STEPHEN  Eo  WEEKS 

cuss  OF  1886 ;  pa  D.  THE  JOHNS  HOPKINS  UNIVERSITY 

yeiRAW 

OF  THE 

UNIVERSimY  OF  NdDEffl  CAMDUNA 
ME  WEEKS  C(D)IL]LECTni(D)N 


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UNIVERSITY  OF  N.C.  AT  CHAPEL  HILL 


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00032195945 

FOR  USE  ONLY  IN 
THE  NORTH  CAROLINA  COLLECTION 


Form  No.  A -368 


ADDISON   COFFIN. 


Life  and  Travels 


OF 


ADDISON  COFFIN 


WRITTEN  BY  HIMSELF 


CLEVELAND,  O. 

WiiiiiiAM  G.  Hubbard 

1897 


Copyrighted  by 

The  Girls'  Aid  Committee  of  North  Carolina 
Yearly  Meeting  of  Friends. 

1897. 


GIRLS'  AID   COMMITTEE 

North  Carolina   Yearly  Meeting  of  Friends. 


..  OBJECT ,,. 

To  assist  worthy  girls  in  obteiining  an  education  at  Guil- 
ford College,  by  furnishing  a  suitable  home  for  such  as  are 
willing  to  board  themselves  and  by  assisting  them  in  paying 
their  tuition. 

Money  required  for  home,  six  thousand  dollars.  Fi\e 
hundred  dollars  already  given.  The  work  has  been  in  oper- 
ation in  cottages  ten  years.  About  one  hundred  girls  ha\c 
thus  been  assisted.  Over  $8,000  have  been  spent  in  the 
work.      There  are  se\eral    hundred    girls   who    ha\e  no  otlier 


means  of  obtaining  an  education. 


Cost  of  Board  in  Cottages,  per  month,       84.00 
Room  Rent  and  Fuel,  per  term,  1.25 

Stationery  and  Books,  per  term,    So.OO  to  5.00 
Society  Fees,  per  term,  1.00 

College  privileges  open  to  residents. 

Location  for   Home  gix-en   by   the   Board   of  Trustees  of 

Guilford  College. 

MARY  M.    HOBBS, 

Trcas.  of  Com. 
Guilford  College,  X.  C. 


This  work  was  undertaken  at  the  earnest  request 
of  several  friends  of  the  author,  and  by  him  was 
donated  to  the  Girls'  Aid  Committee  of  North  Caro- 
lina Yearly  Meeting  of  Eriends,  with  the  hope  that  in 
Grod's  hand  it  might  be  the  means  of  procuring  a  com- 
fortable and  satisfactory  home  for  girls  who  are  en- 
deavoring to  educate  themselves.  In  sending  it  forth 
upon  its  mission  we  have  the  assurance  that  while  the 
cause  for  which  it  is  published  will  receive  material  aid 
from  all  who  purchase  the  book,  they  in  turn  will  find 
both  entertainment  and  information,  and  will  receive 
only  benefit  by  contact  with  the  spirit  of  one  so  thor- 
oughly good  and  true  as  he  who  here  gives  us  his 
life's  story. 

Mary  M.  Hobbs, 
O?  behalf  of  the  Girls  Aid  Committee. 


^ 


PREFACE. 


For  sometime  past  many  of  my  companions  of 
early  life  have  solicited  me  to  write  a  history  of  my 
life,  and  my  knowledge  of  and  connection  with  the 
Underground  Railroad,  as  I  am  now  the  last  survivor 
of  those  who  entered  the  service  of  that  mysterious 
institution  in  or  previous  to  1835. 

The  thought  of  appearing  as  an  author  or  writer 
had  not  entered  my  mind  at  this  period  of  life;  I  had 
not  kept  a  diary,  or  even  notes  of  the  passing  events, 
always  depending  on  memory  for  reminiscences  of  the 
past.  My  memory  has  become  a  wonder  to  many 
people,  and  it  is  the  impression  it  has  made  that 
prompts  the  request  of  many  for  me  to  write  a  biog- 
raphy. In  regard  to  memory,  it  is  but  just  to  say  that 
it  is  not  universal  in  its  capacity ;  things  in  which  I  am 
interested,  things  that  are  striking,  things  that  touch 
and  arouse  sympathy,  sorrow,  joy,  anger,  disgust,  ha- 
tred, hope,  and  fear;  things  that  arouse,  excite,  or 
deeply  impress;  things  that  inspire,  exalt,  and  refine, 
etc.,  require  no  effort  on  my  part  to  remember;  will- 
ing or  unwilling  they  fix  themselves  upon  my  memory, 

(7) 


8  PREFACE. 

and  cannot  be  forgotten.  This  peculiarity  has  come 
down  to  me  through  a  long  line  of  tribal  heredity 
from  pre-historic  times,  known  in  the  past  as  second 
sight,  and  the  gifts  of  the  bards.  My  ability  to  locate 
and  I'emember  places  was  also'  very  good,  which  made 
me  peculiarly  fitted  for  the  dangerous  position  of  con- 
ductor on  the  Underground  Railroad.  I  was  not 
above  the  average  in  the  athletic  sports  of  tlie  time, 
but  had  great  powers  of  endurance,  could  ^'out  wind" 
in  running  any  boy  or  man  in  the  neighborhood,  was 
stout,  but  lubberly  till  nearly  grown,  then  became 
active  and  s\vift  on  foot,  which  gave  me  marked  abil- 
ity for  my  dangerous  life.  I  also  found  it  necessary 
to  assume  and  cultivate  odd  ways  and  odd  ideas,  in 
order  the  better  to  conceal  my  real  character  and  dan- 
gerous employment.  To  some  extent  I  was  cut  oil 
from  much  of  the  social  enjoyment  common  among 
my  fellows,  my  peculiaiities  sometimes  made  me  un- 
popnlar  with  my  lady  associates  and  school  mates, 
this  was  wounding  to  inner  sensitiveness  and  caused 
me  to  shed  many  bitter  tears,  but  above  all  and 
throngh  all  there  was  a  conviction  and  o'ermastering 
impnlse  in  my  heart  that  always  said,  ^^Go  forward, 
fear  not,  I  am  with  thee."  The  threadbare  escapes, 
the  feats  of  agility  in  running,  the  doors  that  were 
opened  for  escape  when  all  seemed  closed  in,  and  it 
appeared  as  though  T  won  Id  pay  the  forfeit  by  a  y\o- 


PREFACE. 


9 


lent  death,  are  too  startling  for  even  this  generation, 
and  as  they  are  not  essential  to  the  upbuilding  of  hu- 
manity, will  soon  be  buried  with  me. 

Now  that  age  and  infirmity  are  weakening  my 
faculties,  the  memories  of  childhood  come  back  with 
startling  vividness;  whole  chapters  could  be  written 
about  the  little  family,  incidents  of  every  day  life, 
and  the  details  of  one  day  at  school  would  fill  many 
pages;  with  the  memory  of  the  incidents  come  back 
the  faces,  forms,  dress  and  voices  of  the  children,  mak- 
ing   a   wonderful   panorama.     It   was   so   with    my 
mother;  in  her  ninety-third  year  she  could  call  up  the 
names  of  her  childhood  associates,  give  their  histoi7, 
where  and  when  they  died,  etc.,  etc.,  etc.      So  it  is 
no  great  wonder  that  my  memory  is  retentive  and 
distinct;  yet  all  through  life  I  have  felt  a  conscious 
defeet  in  many  ways,  and  many  times  would  gladly 
have  exchanged  my  memory  for  other  abilities  that 
I  lacked. 


mTRODUCTORY  CHAPTER. 


It  is  becoming  papular  in  writing  biographies  to 
give  the  genealogy  of  the  person  and  family^  Ac- 
cordingly I  will  give  a  brief  sketch  of  my  ancestry 
as  kept  in  the  family  record  on  the  Island  of  Nan- 
tucket, and  as  found  among  the  old  records  of  South- 
ern Sweden  in  i^orthern  Europe.  My  father,  Vestal 
Coffin,  was  the  son  of  William,  who  was  the  son  of 
Samuel,  who  was  the  son  of  John,  who  was  the  son 
of  Tristram  Coffin,  who  was  one  of  a  company  of 
nine  who,  in  1660,  purchased  the  Island  of  Xan tucket 
from  the  Indians,  the  deed  being  signed  by  two  chiefs, 
Wanackmamack  and  Nickan(X>se. 

Beyond  Tristram  Coffin  the  line  is  unbroken  back 
to  Sir  Richard  Coffin,  who  came  to  England  from  Nor- 
mandy with  William,  the  Conqueror.  Then  still 
back  beyond  Sir  Richard  it  c^n  l)e  traced  to  the  ar- 
rival of  the  Danites  in  Denmark  in  the  second  cen- 
tury, and  through  the  Danites  through  the  wandei*- 
ings  of  the  ten  tribes  of  Israel  to  Samaria  in  72(5  B.  C, 
and  then  back  to  Abraham. 

From  the  sixth  to  the  tenth  century  the  Coffins 

(11) 


12  LIFE    AND    TRAVELS 

bore  an  active  part  in  all  the  conquests  of  the  old 
Viking  kings  and  rovers  who  terrorized  Western  En- 
rope  for  many  centuries. 

Mv  mother's  maiden  name  was  Alethea  Fluke, 
a  direct  descendant  of  the  Albanoids  (ATOite  Race; 
of  Ireland,  the  last  of  the  prehistoric  race.  When 
the  first  colony  of  Hebrews  came  to  Ireland  .1200 
B.  C.  the  Albanoids  were  in  possession  of  the  island^ 
and  had  been  for  an  unknown  period;  they  were 
highly  civilized,  had  a  regular  alphabet  and  written 
language,  and  knew  many  arts  unkno\\m  to  the  He- 
brews— who  were  suppose<l  to  have  known  all  the  civ- 
ilization of  Egypt  at  that  time. 

Soon  after  the  landing  of  the  Hebrews,  strife 
arose  between  them  and  the  Albanoids,  which  result- 
ed in  open  war.  which  continued  much  of  the  time  for 
2000  years,  when  the  latter  were  almost  exterminated 
in  a  sanguinary  battle,  followed  by  an  indiscriminate 
and  merciless  massacre.  In  1784  there  were  but  fif- 
teen of  the  Albanoids  alive  in  all  the  earth.  They  left . 
Ireland  and  came  to  America.  AVhen  my  grand- 
mother, Mary  Fliike,  died  in  1827,  my  mother  an([ 
her  four  children,  even  the  last  of  one  of  the  surviving 
families  who  ever  had  any  children,  and  one  other, 
lacks  but  two  of  being  extinct   to-day. 

Here  I  will  say  that  when  in  Ireland  in  1892  1 
found  the  ruins  of  the  last  stronghold  of  my  ances 


OF    ADDISON    COFFIN. 


13 


tors.  Thirty-six  centuries  ago  there  was  a  large. Driiiii 
temple  in  what,  is  now  County  Down,  or  Doon,  built 
for  worship  and  defense;  when  St.  Patrick  came  he 
turned  it  into  a  Christian  church.  Successive  sieges 
had  destroyed  nearly  all  the  outer,  defenses  and  its 
final  capture  and  destruction  800  years  ago  left  none 
to  rebuild;  yet  a  portion  of  the  walls  were  too  strong 
for  the  destroyers  aiid  remain  to  tell  a  story  of  blood 
and  death  not  excelled  in  all  Ireland. 

The  Albanoid  language  was  distinct  from  any 
other  in  Europe  and  had  legendary  traditions  that 
go  so  far  back  that  one  could  easily  suspect. Ignat us 
Donnelly  of  drawing  largely  from  it,  in  weaving  his 
pleasing,  plausible,  wondrous  story  of  ''Lost  Atalan- 
tis"  that  carries  us  back  into  the  antediluvian  world 
and  to  Adamic  time. 

With  such  ancestry  it  is  little  wonder  that  I  in  - 
herited  peculiar  traits  of  character,  and  managed,  to 
hold  a  place  amid .  surrounding  difficulty.  .  On  my 
father's  side  the  spirit  of  adventure  manifested  itself 
in  the  Underground  Kailroad  business  and  love  of 
travel;  on  my  mother's  side  a  wonderfully  retentive 
memory  and  fluent  tongue,  with  the  singular  second 
sight,  or  mind  reading. 

My  father  died  in  1826,  leaving  my  mother  with 
four  little  children,  one  daughter  and  three  sons;  my 
sister  Elizabeth  was  the  oldest  one,  Alfred  next,  then 


14  LIFE    AND    TRAVEL^ 

myself;  Emory  was  the  youngest.  My  sister  was  gift- 
ed and  beautiful  above  the  average  of  her  associates. 
My  brother  Alfred  V.  is  living  yet  in  Kansas,  broken 
in  constitution  and  almost  helpless.  His  life  has  been 
one  of  unceasing  storm,  struggle  and  conflict.  He 
entered  the  Underground  Railroad  service  early  in  life 
and  was  one  of  the  chief  managers  in  North  Carolina, 
from  1836  to  1852,  when  he  had  to  flee  for  his  life, 
being  betrayed  by  one  whom  he  least  suspected,  in 
aiding  fugitive  slaves  to  escape.  He  reached  my  home 
in  Indiana  where  he  and  his  family  resided  till  New 
Year  1863,  when  he  was  called  into  the  medical  ser- 
vice of  the  government,  for  he  was  a  physician.  He 
was  given  charge  of  the  refugee  tribes  of  loyal  In- 
dians in  Southern  Kansas,  where  he  finally  settled. 
During  his  connection  with  the  Indians  he  had  some 
terribly  narrov/  escapes  and  desperate  struggles  for 
life.  On  one  occasion  he  was  assailed  by  bushwhack- 
ers twuce  in  one  day,  and  saved  his  life  each  time  after 
a  desperate  hand-to-hand  encounter.  The  first  as- 
sault was  by  two  men  who  suddenly  attacked  him, 
the  next  time  by  three;  he  had  no  firearms,  but  his 
only  weapon  was  a  picket  stake,  like  a  policeman** 
club,  which  he  wielded  with  such  frantic  energy  that 
he  saved  his  life.  For  three  years  he  was  m  the 
midst  of  murder,  assassination  and  bloodshed.  By 
riding  through  what  seemed  certain  death  he  saved 


OF    ADDISON    COFFIN.  15 

the  lives  of  250  Union  soldiers  and  a  valuable  con- 
voy of  supplies.  For  all  of  which  he  was  never  rec- 
ognized or  rewarded  by  the  government,  and  he 
scorned  the  idea  of  asking  for  that  which  should  have 
been  given  as  doubly  due,  and  he  will  go  to  his  grave 
with  bitterness  of  heart,  toward  a  thankless  govern- 
ment, which  pensions  deadbeats  and  frauds. 

Brother  Emory  died  the  Fourth  of  July,  1863, 
at  my  home  in  Indiana.  He  was  on  his  way  to  Kansas 
to  look  for  a  new  location.  He  left  a  widow  and 
seven  children.  He  was  the  most  gifted  In  judgment 
and  business  ability  of  any  of  the  family,  could  read 
the  character  of  a  man  almost  at  sight,  but  was  un- 
usually kind  and  generous,  especially  to  those  in  dis- 
tress. 

The  day  of  his  death  was  a  dark  day  at  my  home. 
William  Thomas,  who  married  my  niece,  Miriam  A. 
Henly,  died  in  the  early  morning,  and  he  in  the  even- 
ing, and  I  was  worn  out  and  broken  down  with  watch- 
ing and  loss  of  sleep;  and  as  I  look  back  to  that  time 
I  feel  that  a  special  Providence  alone  carried  me 
through. 

I  was  born  January  22,  1822,  cx>nsequently  was 
not  four  jeam  old  when  my  father  died,  yet  I  can 
remember  his  foiin  and  face,  sometimes  with,  strik- 
ing vividness,  and  in  my  dreams  am  still  a  child  as 
v\^hen  he  was  alive.     He  ajid  my  mother  little  thought 


16  LIFE    AND    TRAVELS 

that  mj  memory  was  at  that  time  taking  impres- 
sions of  words  and  deeds;  many  times  in  after 
years  mother  would  be  astonished  at  my  re- 
citing events  with  unerring  precision  that  happened 
when  a  mere  infant  in  age;  but  dwelHng  on  this  part 
of  my  life  seems  bordering  on  the  supernatural,  so  I 
will  only  mention  one  other  item  here.  I  learned  to 
read  looking  at  the  words  as  my  sister  would  read  in 
a  book;  learned  the  words  before  I  knew  how  to  speli 
the  most  simple  ones,  and  the  result  was  I  never  did 
learn  tx)  spell  anything  like  ordinary  people,  and  in 
our  literary  societies  it  was  next  to  impossible  for  any 
but  my  immediate  asso(iiates  to  decipher  my  compo- 
sitions. 


CHAPTER   FIRST. 


Events  of  Early  Life. 

My  father  was  born  near  New  Garden,  Guilford 
county,  X.  C,  in  1702,  and  died  in  1826  in  the  house 
in  which  he  was  born,  and  on  his  birthday,  October 
10th.  His  mother,  Elizabeth  (Vestal)  Coffin,  was  left 
a  widow  with  four  small  children,  one  daughter  and 
three  sons,  who  grew  to  man  and  womanhood  under 
many  privations  common  to  the  lot  of  the  widow  and 
the  fatherless  of  that  age  of  southern  civilization.  At, 
an  early  age  my  father  entered  the  anti-slavery  move- 
ment, and  his  ready,  natural  ability  soon  brought  him 
to  the  front.  When  Benjamin  Lundy  visited  North 
Cai'olina  in  1816  he  was  among  the  first  to  join  the 
Manumission  Society  organized  by  that  celebrated 
man.  In  1818  he  was  the  only  man  who  had  the 
courage  to  attack  the  then  domineering  slave  power  in 
the  South.  It  came  about  in  this  way.  A  young 
free  negro,  named  Benjamin  Benson,  was  kidnaped 
in  the  State  of  Delaware,  and  brought  to  Greensboro, 
where  he  was  sold  f/>  a  very  wealthy  and  influential 
slave-ow^ner  named    Thompson.     A  slave    owned  by 

(17) 


18  LIFE    AND    TRAVELS 

General  Hamilton  learned  the  facts  concerning  Ben- 
jamin Benson,  and  gave  the  information  to  my  father, 
who  interviewed  Benson,  then  wrote  to  Delaware,  and 
got  sufficient  evidence  to  get  out  a  writ  for  Thompson 
requiring  him  to  produce  Benson  and  show  cause  why 
he  should  not  have  his  fi^eedom.  The  officer  who 
served  the  writ  gave  opportunity  for  Thompson  to 
conceal  Benson,  and  on  the  hearing  denied  ever  having 
such  a  negro  in  his  possession.  The  case  was  dis- 
missed and  that  night  Benson  was  run  off  secretly 
to  Georgia  and  sold.  This  notorious  outrage  on  law 
and  justice  caused  much  excitement  and  intensified 
the  spirit  of  opposition  to  slavery. 

My  father  was  now  joined  by  Dr.  George  Swain 
and  Enoch  Macy,  and  determined  to  push  the  caso 
to  the  end.  They  wrote  again  to  Delaware  and  en- 
listed the  anti-slavery  men  there  to  the  extent  that 
the  State  Legislature  made  an  appropriation  of  money 
for  expense,  and  made  my  father  and  his  two  friends 
l^al  agents  to  push  the  case,  and  sent  a  man  to  iden- 
tify Benjamin  Benson.  In  the  meantime,  the  slave 
of  General  Hamilton,  known  as  Hamilton's  Saul,  had 
been  secretly  listening  and  learning  all  the  plans  of 
Thomj^son  and  the  slave  powder,  which  information 
was  invaluable  in  the  case. 

When  all  was  ready,  another  writ  was  sei-ved, 
in  which  it  was  ordered  that  lienson  should  Ixr  pi'o- 


OF   ADDISON    COFFIN.  19 

duoed  in  open  court.  This  brought  things  to  a  crisis. 
Thompson  had  to  go  to  Georgia,  where  the  man  to 
whom  he  had  sold  the  negro  made  him  pay  $1600 
before  he  would  give  him  up.  At  the  trial  Benson 
was  mixed  up  with  a  score  of  negToes  to  test  the  man 
from  Delaware,  but  he  identified  him  at  sight.  The 
evidence  was  so  conclusive  that  the  negro  was  set  at 
liberty  at  once,  and  he  returned  to  his  home  and  cor- 
responded with  my  father  up  to  the  time  of  his  death. 

This  case  naturally  placed  my  father  in  the  front 
rank  of  anti-slavery  men,  and  he  was  an  object  of 
hatred  among  the  more  violent  and  vindictive  slave- 
holders. Seemingly,  without  being  conscious  of  how 
it  came  about,  he  was  expected  to  do  all  the  danger- 
ous work,  to  take  all  the  responsibility  and  leadership ; 
others  were  ready  and  mlling  to  share  the  cost,  do  all 
the  business,  fetch  and  carry,  if  he  would  be  the  leader 
in  the  hours  of  trial. 

In  my  History  of  Friends  in  North  Carolina  I  ,^  ^-^ 
give  the  origin  of  the  Underground  Railroad,  and  will  /^^^^T. 
not  repeat  it  here,  excepting  to  say,  that  father  origi-  ^ 

nated  and  operated  the  first  of  the  kind  in  America, 
in  1819.  His  cousin,  Levi  Coffin,  who  in  after  years 
became  famed  as  an  Abolitionist,  took  his  first  les- 
sons under  my  father,  and  many  were  the  secret  con- 
ferences they  held  after  night,  never  meeting  in  the 

2 


20  LIFE    AND    TRAVELS 

same  place  the  seeond  time,  to  prevent  espionage  or 
betrayal. 

A  negro  named  John  Dimery  was  freed  by  his 
master  in  the  lower  part  of  the  State;  he  married  a 
freed  woman,  who  had  been  owned  by  a  neighbor. 
They  came  up  to  New  Gai*den  for  safety,  where  they 
lived  in  peace  for  several  years,  and  liad  seven  chil- 
dren. The  old  master  of  John  died;  immediately 
two  of  his  sons  came  secretly  to  Xew  Garden  on  pre- 
tense of  buying  stock;  they  located  John  Dimery's 
house,  stopped  over  night  at  a  near  neighbor's;  some- 
time after  midnight  they  slipped  quietly  out,  went 
to  the  house,  called  Dimery  out  and  pretended  to  have 
l>een  hunting  and  were  lost.  Xo  sooner  was  he  out  of 
the  house  than  he  was  seized  and  a  desperate  struggle 
ensued;  the  wife,  Aunt  Sally,  ran  out,  but  was  knocked 
down,  almost  senseless;  then  Dimery  shouted  to  hi^ 
oldest  daughter  to  run  for  Mr.  Coffin,  my  father, 
which  she  did  like  a  wild  deer.  Father  had  just  step- 
ped out  to  get  wood  to  start  a  fire;  without  stopping 
for  coat  or  hat  he  ran  at  full  speed,  providentially 
meeting  Isaac  White,  a  special  friend.  He  just  said, 
^^Come,"  and  they  both  ran  like  the  wind.  The  kid- 
napers had  finally  overpowered  Dimery  and  taken  him 
to  the  neighbor's,  bound  securely.  In  spite  of  threats, 
Dimery  told  the  neighbor  that  Mr.  Coffin  would  soon 
be  there  and  begged  their  protection.     The  kidnapers 


OF    ADDISON    COFFIN.  21 

and  neighbor  weire  ready  to  oome  to  blows,  when 
father  and  Isaac  White  nislied  in;  then  the  scene 
changed;  the  kidnapers  were  told  that  tliey  would 
be  taken  before  the  nearest  magistrate  and  prosecuted 
for  their  crime.  This  brought  them  to  a  standstill, 
and  while  they  were  debating  the  case,  the  lady  of  the 
house  had  been  quietly  untying  the  rope,  and  before 
any  one  knew  it  Dimery  sprang  out  and  made  for 
the  woods;. the  kidnapei-s  rushed  after  him,  calling  a 
large  dog  and  setting  him  after  the  fugitive,  but 
when  the  dog  came  near,  Dimery  clapped  his  hands 
and  hallooed  as  though  there  was  game  ahead;  the 
dog  went  tearing  into  the  woods,  and  the  fugitive  close 
after,  when  they  both  disappeared.  Father  and  Isaac 
White  now  renewed  their  threats,  of  aiTest,  which  so 
alarnied  the  men  that  they  soon  mount-ed  their  horses 
and  galloped  out  of  the  neighborhood  and  were  seeii 
no  more.  John  Dimery  was  started  on  the  Under- 
ground Railroad  that  night  and  soon  landed  at  Hich- 
mond,  Indiana,  where  he  worked  and  sent  money  +o 
his  family  for  their  support  for  two  years,  and  then 
had  them  sent  to  him. 

There  was  mrvre  of  this  kind  of  business  done  ai 
that  period  than  in  assisting-  real  fugitive  slaves.  In 
1772  the  friends  of  North  Carolina  freed  their  slaves, 
as  did  many  Methodists  and  other  conscientious  peo- 
ple.      The  number  amounted  to  thousands  thus  lib- 


22  LIFE    AND    TRAVELS 

era  ted,  and  it  was  frequently  the  case  that  heirs  would 
try  to  re-enslave  those  freed  people ;  this  constant  har- 
assing and  kidnaping  finally  di-ove  thousands  of  the 
negroes  across  the  Ohio  river  into  free  territory.  The 
mountaineers  in  Virginia  were  so  used  to  seeing  ne- 
groes going  westward  that  it  wa^  less  dangerous  for 
fugitives  to  escape  that  way  than  through  Kentucky. 

After  my  father's  death  many  fugitives  contin- 
ued to  come  to  the  old  home,  and  my  mother  would 
advise  and  counsel  with  them  as  time  and  opportunity 
offered,  until  brother  Alfred  and  I  were  old  enough 
to  take  the  post  of  danger  our  father  occupied;  but 
this  is  anticipating  history,  and  we  will  go  back  to 
■earlier  days. 

My  mother  died  November  3,  1891.  Soon  after 
her  death.  Dr.  Nereus  Mendenhall  of  Guilford  Col- 
lege, wrote  a  short  aucconnt  of  her  life  for  the  ^'.Guil- 
ford Collegian,^'  which  was  copied  in  "Ohristinn 
Worker'-  for  January  14,  1892,  which  may  come  in 
place  here. 

"Alethea  Coffin  was  born  at  Big  Spring,  two 
miles  west  of  Greensboro,  Guilford  county,  N".  C, 
on  the  16th  of  April,  1798.  Her  husband's  name  was 
Vestal  Coffin;  her  marriage  with  him  was  on  the  27th 
of  November,  1817.  In  the  fall  of  1826  they  were 
both  sick,  and  up(m  his  death  she  was  left  with  four 
small  children,  the  oldest  eight  years  old,  the  young- 


ALETHEA  COFFIN. 


OF    ADDISON    COFFIN.  25 

est  two.  Greatly  weakened  by  sickness  and  the 
shock  given  by  her  husband's  death,  the  fall  work  not 
done,  the  winter  clothing  not  prepared,  com  not  gatli- 
ered,  the  prospect  before  her  was,  indeed,  a  gloomy 
one.  Some  of  her  children  yet  remember  many  a  sad 
day  of  that  winter;  many  a  time  of  shivering  by  a 
small  fire,  the  mother  sick,  the  oldest  boy  hardly  able 
to  carry  wood,  the  daughter  not  able  to  do  much  in  the 
way  of  cooking,  no  wonder  that  sometimes  they  all 
cried  until  late  at  night. 

"It  was  in  this  dark  winter  that  the  Lord  a.n- 
swered  her  prayers  for  help.  Ever  after  she  never 
doubted,  never  faltered,  never  stopped  for  any  mis- 
fortune, failure  in  crops,  loss  of  stock  or  betrayal  of 
trust.  She  never  hesit-ated  to  divide  her  scanty  means 
with  the  poor  and  hc^meless;  many  a  sick  and  homeless 
boy  was  taken  in.  washed,  nursed  and  cared  fox, 
clothed  with  the  garments  of  her  own  children,  whiie 
she  washed  and  mended  his, 

"Her  own  faith  and  trust  in  God  were  the  means 
of  drawing  to  her  for  advice  those  in  darkness  and 
discourageme^nt,  especially  the  widows,  the  fatherless 
and  the  motherless.  Her  education  was  in  advance 
of  the  women  of  her  generation,  and  the  severe  school- 
ing of  necessity  made  her  a  wonder  of  economy  and 
business  management,  hence  she  was  consulted  by  hei 
neighbors  in  making  calculations  in  warping,  striping, 


26  LIFE    AND    TRAVELS 

reeling  and  all  the  arts  of  cloth,  making  and  house- 
hold matters;  and  to  this  advanced  education  and 
home  ability,  her  children  wei^  indebted  for  much  of 
their  education;  they  were  started  early  in  general 
reading;  all  had  read  the  Bible  through  before  they 
wer  sixteen. 

''The  nullification  excitement  in  1830  caused 
many  of  her  neighbors  to  move  to  Indiana.  She  and 
her  children  entered  into  the  spirit  of  the  emigra- 
tion, and  measures  were  taken  to  secui-e  a  home  in  this 
^Far  West.'  With  her  limited  means  it  seemed  a 
hopeless  task  to  save  $100  to  pay  for  80  acres  of  land. 
The  matter  was  presented  to  the  Lord  in  prayer;  the 
answer  was,  ^Gro,'  and  by  rigid  economy  $50  was  saved 
in  two  years,  and  Job  Cofiin  (brother-in-law),  fur- 
nished the  other  $50  on  long  time,  so  in  1833  in  com- 
pany \\dth  Elihu  and  Jane  Coffin  and  Aunt  Rhoda 
Gurley — she  putting  in  a  horse  as  her  part  of  the  out- 
fit— she  started  to  Indiana.  Among  the  mouutains 
everything  was  so  grand  and  new,  she  and  Rhoda 
Gurley  walked  more  than  half  the  time,  preferring 
it  to  being  jolted  in  the  wagon  over  the  rough  stones. 
At  Richmond,  Ind.,  she  boiTOwed  a  saddle,  took  her 
horse,  and  set  out  to  find  her  old  neighboi-s  100  miles 
away.  Alone,  following  the  roads  and  by-ways,  she 
found  her  old  friends  settled  at  Spiceland,  in  Henry 
county.  Walnut  Ridge  in  Hancock,  and  in  White  lick, 


OF    ADDISON    COFFIN.  27 

in  Hendricks  comities,  and  tinallj  reached  lier  old 
neighbor,  Asahel  Hnnt.  He  and  other  old  neighbors 
turned  out  through  the  thick,  tall  forest,  and  soon 
found  a  lot  of  good  land  still  vacant.  Early  nexi 
morning  in  a  continuous  rain,  she  set  out  for  the 
Land  Office  ^at  Orawforclsville,  25  miles  further  on. 
She  entered  the  land,  remained  over  night  and  the 
next  day  returned  to  Asahel  Hunt's.  Her  joiu-ney 
was  now  accomplished,  and  she  was  the  owner  of  a 
home  in  the  free  West.  In  the  ride  to  Graw^forda- 
ville  there  were  no  roads,  only  a  blazed  horse  path, 
with  settlements  sometimes  five  miles  apart;  yet  the 
trip  was  made  in  safety  with  no  fear  of  danger  or 
accident,  for  she  felt  the  presence  of  the  Lord  with 
her  all  the  time.  Resting  and  visiting  a  few  days, 
she  was  ready  to  st-art  on  her  long  journey  home. 

''On  arriving  at  Richmond  she  found  Elihu  Cof- 
fin ready  to  return  but  anxious  to  buy  a  very  fine,  large 
hoi'se  if  there  was  any  w^ay  to  get  him  home.  She 
told  him  if  he  would  get  a  good  saddle  she  would  ride 
the  horse;  this  he  did  at  once,  and  she  rode  all  the  dis- 
tance from  Richmond,  Ind.,  to  'New  Grarden,  N".  C, 
over  500  miles.  She  enjoyed  the  ride  and  stood  the 
trip  better  than  in  the  wagon.  When  it  rain-ed  she 
put  on  a  waterproof  overcoat  and  was  safe  from  storm 
and  blast.     It  was  springtime,  and  to  the  day  of  her 


28  LIFE    AND    TRAVELS 

death,  that  grand  overland  mountain  ride  was  one 
of  the  bright  spots  in  her  memory. 

"She  died  on  the  land  then  purchased,  and  it  was 
tlie  only  tract  in  Hendricks  county  that  had  not 
changed  hands.  The  last  tax  receipt  bore  date  a  few 
days  before  her  death  in  her  own  name.  Her  inten- 
tion was  to  move  to  Indiana  in  two  or  three  years,  but 
in  the  fall  of  1833  at  Xorth  Carolina.  Yearly  Meeting 
she  was  appointed  on  the  committee  to  consider  and 
perfect  a  plan  for  New  Garden  Boarding-School,  and 
becoming  deeply  interested  in  the  school  determined 
to  stay  and  give  her  children  some  of  the  benefit  of 
the  school.  Of  this  school  she  subsequently  was  ma- 
tron for  some  time,  in  which  capacity  her  manage- 
ment was  a  model  of  carefulness  and  economy.  After 
moving  to  Indiana  in  1852,  she  was  for  nearly  nine 
years  assistant  matron  of  Earlham  College.  This 
connection  with  the  two  colleges  gave  her  a  very  large 
acquaintance,  and  at  Earlham  the  children  of  the  N'e^Y 
Garden  Boarding-School  pupils  were  often  under  hev 
care,  and  she  would  give  them  reminiscences  of  their 
parents,  and  tell  more  about  them  than  they  had  ever 
known. 

"Though  she  attained  a  great  age  her  hair  did 
not  turn  grey,  nor  did  her  sight  fail,  as  is  usual  ^\^th 
age.  Up  to  ninety  she  could  read  ordinary  print  with- 
out glasses,   and  large  print  up  to  the  time  of  her 


OF    ADDISON    COFFIN.  29 

death.  She  conld  not  bear  t(»  he  idle;  if  nothing  else 
could  be  found  for  her  tc^  do,  she  would  get  some  wool 
or  flax  and  sit  down  and  spin  thread  and  yam,  and 
then  knit  it  into  stockings  for  presents  to  her  grand- 
children. She  would  at  other  times  take  the  prun- 
ing-sheai's  a.nd  go  among  tho  fruits  and  grape  vine?, 
or  into  the  orchard,  and  take  delight  in  trimming  and 
pruning  for  hours  at  a  time.  Her  long  life  as  a  far- 
mer made  her  an  expert,  at  all  kinds  of  work  within 
her  strengtli. 

''She  was  not  a  birthright  member  of  the  Society 
of  Friends,  but  joined  them  soon  after  her  marriage. 
She  attended  Sandy  Spring  Meeting  till  1817,  when 
she  removed  to  New  Garden. 

''About  a  year  ago,  when  called  upon  by  the  His- 
torical Society  of  Henry  and  Wayue  Counties,  Ind., 
she  was  able  to  give  the  names  of  more  than  300  fam- 
ilies that  had  moved  from  Guilford  county  to  Indi- 
ana between  1805  and  1835.  Did  time  and  space 
permit,  many  interesting  and  thrilling  incidents  of 
her  life  might  be  dwelt  upon ;  as  of  the  handkerchief 
given  her  in  1852,  on  her  depajrt.ure  for  Indiana,  as 
a  keepsake  by  her  friend  Asenath  Clark,  which  she 
sent  to  her  son,  Nathan  H.  Clark,  with  the  message, 
'The  two  mothers  will  soon  be  together  again.'  Also 
of  the  photograph,  hundreds  of  which  have  been 
called  for^  and  more  still  in  demand,   a  photograph 


30  LIFE    AND    TRAVELS 

of  herself  sitting  at  work  at  her  little  spinning-wheel. 
Of  the  family  reunion  a  year  ago  in  which  a  gTeat^ 
great-granddaughter  was  presented  to  her  by  the 
child's  grandmothea\  A  grandmother  presenting  her 
grandchild  to  her  grandmother,  a  rather  impress! v-j 
scene.  Again,  of  the  discourse  which  in  her  90th 
year  she  made  to  a  large  company  of  small  children  on 
Children's  Day;  when  she  stepped  out  before  them, 
she  drew  from  her  pocket  a  primer  alx)ut  four  inches 
square;  holding  it  up  she  said:  'This  is  my  first  primer, 
bought  in  1804;'  then  gave  to  the  little  folks  a  deeply 
interesting  account  of  education  from  that  day  up  to 
1890,  the  whole  discourse  a  surprise,  not  only  to 
others,  but  herself,  for  she  was  carried  back  to  child- 
hood again,  and  looking  along  the  life  journey  saw  her- 
self, now  old  and  worn  with  age,  standing  before  tho 
little  children  and  saw  herself  restored  to  childhood 
in  them;  but  this  sketch  must  come  to  a  close. 

''Her  greatest  objection  to  moving  West  was  a 
wish  that  her  remains  might  repose  in  N^ew  Garden 
burial  ground  beside  those  of  her  husband,  mother 
and  daughter.  Her  son,  Addison,  promised  her  that 
if  practicable  her  wish  should  be  complied  with.  She 
gently  passed  away  on  the  3d  of  November,  1891,  and 
her  son  with  filial  love  and  true  to  his  promise  made  40 
yeai"s  ago  brought  the  remains  and  saw  them  deposited 
by  those  of  her  husband.  The  burial  on  the  5th  was 
attended  by  the  students  and  officers  of  Guilford  Ool- 


OF   ADDISON   COFFIN.  31 

lege  and  her  old  neighbors  who  still  survived.  Tes- 
timonials as  to  the  excellence  of  her  character  were 
given  by  Mary  C.  Woody  and  Rufus  P.  King  (and 
Kerens  Mendeiihall,  added),  and  the  latter  part  of  the 
31st  chapter  of  Proverbs  was  read  as  appropriate  to 
the  occasion." — Nereus  Mendenhall,  in  Guilford  Col- 
legian. 

In  spite  of  hardship  and  privation,  my  sister  and 
brother  were  strong  and  healthy,  and  we  grew  like 
other  children,  and  mother's  fund  of  knowledge 
helped  to  keep  us  interested  and  thus  our  minds  were 
taken  off  the  unpleasant  struggle  to  make  ends  meet. 
We  soon  made  conmion  cause  in  all  home  interests, 
and  resolved  within  our  young  hearts  that  we  would 
make  a  living  and  one  day  be  independent,  not  de- 
pendent ;  and  this  resolve  our  favorite  guardian.  Uncle 
Job  Coffin,  always  encouraged  us  in,  and  let  no  op- 
portunity slip  to  hre  our  zeal  on  that  line  of  aspiration, 
and  with  his  care,  counsel  and  help  we  succeeded. 

As  heretofore  stated,  my  memory  was  a  part  of 
my  inheritance,  an  inseparable  part  of  myself,  and  in 
early  infancy  was  active  and  gTew  with  my  growth; 
but  that  other  inheritance  also  manifested  itself  at 
an  early  date.  At  six  yeai-s  of  age  the  tii'st  clear,  dis- 
tinctive manifestation  came.  I  was  alone  in  the  or- 
chard, when  suddenly  I  seemed  surrounded  by  a  soft, 
warm  influence  that  seemed  lifting  me  up  in  the  arr, 


32  LIFE    AND    TRAVELS 

then  all  at  once  an  infinite  expanse  opened  to  my  eyes, 
so  fnll  of  wonderful,  and  to  my  young  mind  awful 
things,  that  I  was  teiTified,  and  ran  screaming  to  the 
house.  Mother  met  me  and  at  firet  sight  comprehend- 
ed the  terrible  reality.  Second-sight  had  come  upon 
me,  and  it  filled  her  mth  sadness  and  suffering,  for 
she  knew  too  well  by  the  tribal  tradition  that  all  who 
inherited  it  went  to  an  early  grave,  unless  they  had  an 
iron  constitution.  From  that  hour  life  to  me  was 
full  of  hidden  teiTor;  I  was  too  young  to  comprehend 
the  situation;  every  effort  was  now  made  by  the  few 
who  knew  about  this  condition  to  arrest  the  further 
development,  and  I  had  a  sore,  sad  life  of  it  until  T 
was  twelve  years  old. 

This  strange  clairvoyant  state  came  more  vividly 
upon  me  in  sleep;  then  there  was  no  limit;  space  and 
distance  vanished,  and  for  a  time  I  could  not  shut  out 
the  awful  scene.  One  time,  when  eight  years  old, 
mother  went  to  see  a  dear  friend,  ^aomi  Stephens, 
who  had  just  been  left  a  A\adow,  leaving  us  children 
at  home.  After  playing  outdoors  until  tired,  we  went 
in  to  the  fire;  my  younger  brother  and  I  lay  down  on 
the  floor  and  went  to  sleep.  Suddenly  a  vision  opened 
to  my  mind ;  I  saw  mother  sitting  weeping  by  ^aomi 
Stephens,  who  was  wringing  her  hands  as  if  her  heart 
would  break.  It  was  over  two  miles  away,  yet  I  saw 
every  feature,  every  movement  and  gesture  of  both. 


OF    ADDISON    COFFIN.  33 

I  sprang  to  my  feot  and  started  to  run  in  a  straight 
line  to  mother,  and  it  was  all  my  sister  and  brothei' 
conld  do  to  overtake  and  liold  me  from  running  on, 
and  the  vision  would  not  fade  until  mother  returned 
and  took  me  in  her  arms.  That  vision  has  never 
faded,  it  v\^as  as  I  saw  it;  the  two  were  sitting  as  I  de- 
scribed at  that  very  moment. 

In  after  yeai*s  I  took  the  bearing  of  the  line  1 
started  to  run,  and  it  was  as  unerring  as  a  surveyor 
could  run  a  line,  and  yet  I  had  not  seen  the  place. 
Efforts  were  now  redoubled  to  watch  me  at  all  times, 
and  Uncle  Job  was  untiring  in  filling  my  mind  and 
taking  my  attention  with  stories  of  hunting,  fishing, 
pioneer  life,  and  getting  me  interested  in  learning  to 
shoot  at  a  mark,  etc.,  etc.  Uncle  Joseph  Hubbard, 
then  quite  old,  did  much  in  telling  stories  of  hunting 
and  travel,  and  with  my  own  intense  desire  to  escape 
such  fearful  things,  the  visitations  became  less  fre- 
quent, and  ceased  altogether  in  their  first  intensity, 
though  there  has  not  been  a  year  of  my  life  in  which 
I  did  not  feel  the  influence,  in  what  some  would  call 
hmirs  of  inspiration;  to-day  it  is  called  mind-readims, 
and  at  times  when  these  clairvoyant  visions  would 
have  come,  a  remarkable  consciousness  comes 
over  me  that  gives  the  mind-reading  ability;  but 
enough  of  this;  this  materialistic  age  has  no  faith  in 
anything  that  it  does  not  know;  yet  with  my  experi- 


34  LIFE    AND    TRAVELS 

ence  I  can  understand  what  gaye  rise  to  the  belief  in 
the  supernatural,  and  the  power  to  the  seers  in  the  ohl 
Runic  times,  that  became  liereditarT  in  the  course 
of  many  centuries.  I  inherited  the  condition,  or  gift, 
or  what  it  may  be  called;  if  it  had  been  cultivated,  it 
would  bave  increased,  and  could  have  been  turned 
to  good  or  evil. 

My  first  day  at  school  was  in  the  spring  of  1828, 
and  it  was  a.  bitter  day  to  me,  for  all  seemed  strange 
and  unnatural;  the  result  was  I  cried  nearly  all  day, 
A  girl,  some  older,  Betsey  Portis,  took  pity  on  me 
and  took  me  under  her  care  and  protection,  for  which 
I  thanked  her  ever  after.  She  lived  until  a  few  weeks 
ago  (October  15,  1894),  and  died  in  peace.  There 
were  thirty-two  children  at  school  that  day,  and  but 
three  are  now  li^dng,  Elam  Benbow,  Phebe  Ross,  and 
myself.  The  larger  number  emigrated  West,  and  I 
have  met  their  children  in  every  state  and  territory 
north  of  the  Ohio  and  west  of  the  Mississippi  River. 

I  could  read  in  a  little  primer,  and  it  was  some 
days  before  the  teacher,  Lewis  Hobbs,  found  I  did 
not  know  the  letters  of  the  alphabet,  and  he  had  hard 
work  to  get  them  fixed  in  my  mind  as  at  all  essential 
to  reading.  From  that  time  on  thTOUgh  boyhood  T 
attended  school  two  to  three  months  each  year,  and 
as  much  of  the  teaching  at  that  time  developed  mem- 
ory more  than  thought,  I  had  no  difficulty  in  stand 


OF    ADDISON    COFFIN.  35 

ing  well  to  the  front  in  all  things  but  spelling;  was 
always  foot  in  that;  other  l>oys  and  girls  felt  safe  from 
being  foot  the  '^last  day  of  school,"  for  they  knew  1 
would  be  there  in  my  regular  place.  There  was  one 
branch  I  excelled  in,  that  was  geography;  it  w^as  no 
trouble  to  locate  and  remember  places  and  boundaries, 
and  I  early  began  reading  histories  in  which  I  soon  be- 
came interested,  and  have  never  grown  w^eary  up  to 
this  day. 

One  time  mother  and  a  neighbor  woman  were 
talking  on  Scriptures  and  spoke  of  Caleb  and  Joshua 
as  being  the  only  men  of  six  hundred  thousand  who 
reached  the  promised  land;  it  so  interested  me  that  T 
began  asking  questions.  Mother  told  me  to  read  the 
Bible  and  I  would  find  may  things  far  more  wonder- 
ful. I  beg-an  reading  at  once,  and  read  every  word 
dbefore  the  summer  ended;  though  I  could  not  pro- 
nounce half  the  names  and  many  of  the  words  cor- 
rectly, I  got  the  substance  clear  and  distinct,  and  that 
summer's  reading  was  the  foundation  of  my  success 
in  life,  such  as  it  has  been.  ,-,.•' 

The  home  life  had  its  peculiar  and  special  fea- 
tures; mother  went  out  with  her  children  to  work  on 
the  farm  in  the  day-time,  and  then  all  joined  in  the 
housew^ork  at  night,  sometimes  working  till  a  late 
hour.  Wlien  frujt  drying  was  in  season  we  Would  peel 
and  cut.  the  fruit,  at. night, and  work  in  the  fields  in 


36  LIFE    AND    TRAVELS 

the  daj.  Tli€  tii-st  crop  of  com  w€  cultivated  our- 
selves, my  bix>tiier  held  the  plow,  and  I  rode  the  horse; 
the  horse  knew  as  much  about  driving  as  I  did,  and 
more  than  one  time  I  fell  asleep  and  fell  off.  At  nine 
years  of  age  I  began  plowing  alone,  and  did  more  or 
less  of  it  for  sixty  yeare.  In  like  manner  necessity 
required  me  to  leam  all  kinds  of  work  at  an  early 
age.  Thus  in  my  youth,  yea  almost  infancy,  I  par- 
took of  the  bitter  lessons  of  life,  for  there  seemed 
nothing  ahead  but  hai-d  labor;  other  boys  of  my  ago 
who  had  fathers,  could  go  hunting,  fishing,  swimming 
and  enjoy  other  amusements,  while  with  me  it  was 
work,  work,  work.  At  the  end  of  forty  years  I  was 
astonished  and  thankful  to  learn  that  those  bitter  les- 
sons were  blessing's  in  disguise;  for  the  schooling  in 
childhood  had  prepared  me  to  meet  and  overcome  op- 
position, had  made  me  an  expert  in  many  kinds  of 
farm  and  mechanical  labor,  which  gave  me  confi- 
dence and  self-dependence,  while  my  childhood  asso- 
ciates, who  had  an  easy  time,  were  not  prepare^l  to 
meet  the  stern  realities  of  everyday  life,  and  many 
of  them  failed  and  went  down  in  the  struggle;  though 
I  remember  those  sore  days  of  trial  and  heartache,  and 
the  bitterness  is  all  gone,  and  a  sweet  memory  now 
illuminates  the  clouds  that  hung  over  me  then. 

In  the  latter  part  of  the  summer  of  1835,  an 
event  occurred  that  had  much  to  do  with  all  my  after 


OF    ADDISON    COFFIN.  37 

life.  01(1  General  Hamilton  had  died,  and  his  slave, 
Solomon,  or  Saul,  was  sold  to  a  slave  dealer,  Ike 
Weatherby,  and  taken  to  Southern  Georgia  and  sold. 
It  was  he  who  had  aided  my  father  so  much  in  secur- 
ing the  freedom  of  Benjamin  Benson,  and  he  had  also 
helped  Cousin  Levi  Coffin  in  many  similar  cases. 
When  Saur  was  taken  south  a  heavy  iron  colar  was 
ri\>eted  around  his  neck,  and  he  was  chained  in  a  coffle 
(a  chain-gang  of  slaves).  Saul  w^as  looked  upon  as  a 
dangerous  slave  on  account  of  his  intelligence  and 
judgment,  so  he  was  closely  watched  for  a  year  by  his 
new  master,  a.nd  often  chained  at  night.  When  the 
vigilance  slackened  he  began  planning  his  escape,  and 
finally  succeeded  in  eluding  the  surveillance  of  the 
overseer  and  driver.  He  had  carefully  noted  the  road 
a«  he  was  taken  south,  had  kept  thie  names  of  rivers 
and  towns  and  many  of  the  camps.  When  he  escaped 
he  had  provision  for  a  few  days,  so  he  pushed  on  each 
night  Avith  all  his  strength,  and  was  making  good 
headway  when  one  day  he  was  startled  at  the  sound 
of  bloodhounds,  and  he  knew  the  danger  at  once.  He 
was  still  strong  and  active,  though  past  middle  life, 
and  was  brave  to  a  fault,  so  he  armed  himself  with  a 
good  club  and  started  to  run  in  the  hope  of  reaching 
a  creek  or  river.  After  an  hour's  run  he  reached  a 
large  creek  with  steep  banks,  and  too  deep  to  wade,  so 
he  swam  across  and  ran  on  again  with  some  hope  that 
3 


38  LIFE    AND   TRAVELS 

the  horseman  in  pursuit  could  not  easily  cross  the 
creek,  and  he  could  have  a  fair  fight  with  the  hounds. 
It  proved  as  he  thought;  the  hounds  came  to  the  creek 
and  swam  across,  but  the  horsemen  in  pursuit  could 
not  cross,  so  went  some  distance  up  stream.  In  the 
meantime,  the  hounds  came  upon  him,  but  he  had 
chosen  his  position  on  a  large  stump  about  four  feet 
high,  from  which  he  defended  himself  with  the  en- 
ergv  of  despair.  S<X)n  he  killed  one  of  the  three, 
but  the  other  two  were  old  in  blood,  and  were  both 
fierce  and  wary.  One  time  they  both  assailed  him 
at  once,  and  he  was  nearly  dragged  to  the  ground,  but 
one  fell  beneath  a  single  blow,  and  the  other  was 
wounded.  He  was  now  becoming  fearful  that  the 
horsemen  would  come  up,  so  he  determined  to  risk  all 
in  a  desperate  attempt,  so  he  leaped  from  the  stump 
and  attacked  the  surviving  dog;  the  brute  seemed  to 
understand  it  and  also  fought  for  life;  for  a  few  min- 
utes the  conflict  was  savage  and  furious,  but  the  dog 
soon  lay  dead.  Saul  was  almost  breathless,  was  badly 
torn  and  lacerated  about  the  legs  and  left  arm,  but 
he  had  no  time  to  lose,  so  started  again  toward  a  tan- 
gled thicket  not  far  away,  into  which  he  rushed  re- 
gardless of  briars,  thorns  and  bramble  vines.  In  a 
short  time  the  horn  of  the  hoi*semen  was  heard  call- 
ing the  hounds;  as  their  baying  had  ceased  they  sup- 
posed they  had  overtaken  and  killed  their  victim;  after 


OP    ADDISON    COFFIN.  «$« 

calling  and  hunting  for  some  time  they  found  the 
scene  of  conflict  and  the  dead  animals.  Their  furious 
cursing  was  heard  by  Saul  in  the  midst  of  the  thicket, 
where  he  was  safe  from  further  pursuit  without 
hounds. 

As  soon  as  twilight  fell  Saul  came  out  the  way 
he  entered  the  thicket  and  took  the  back  track  to  the 
creek,  when  he  plunged  into  the  water  and  swam  and 
waded  down  stream  several  miles,  for  he  feared  a 
relay  of  hounds  would  be  brought  and  the  pursuit 
renewed.  At  last  he  landed  and  pushed  on  again; 
his  lacerated  limbs  were  very  painful  and  swollen,  and 
but  for  the  bath  in  the  creek,  might  have  been  dan- 
gerous. It  is  enough  to  say  that  weeks  later  he  startled 
us  by  suddenly  appearing  at  our  house  in  a  deplorable 
condition;  his  wounds  were  not  all  healed,  but  were 
frightful  ulcerated  sores;  his  clothes  were  in  tatters, 
and  he  was  almost  famished  with  hunger.  The  sight 
was  too  much  for  me ;  I  found  myself  beyond  the  power 
of  restraint.  When  the  tears  ceased  to  flow  a  new 
impulse  seemed  to  fill  my  whole  being,  and  then  and 
there  I  "vowed  eternal  hate  to  Rome."  In  all  my  life 
that  vow  was  kept  amid  sunshine  or  storm. 

When  Saul's  master  returned  from  the  pursuit 
he  wrote  immediately  to  Greensboro,  giving  notice  of 
SauFs  escape,  and  offering  a  large  reward  for  his  cap- 
ture;  soon  there  was  espionage  in   all  parts  of  the 


40  LIFE    AND    TRAVELS 

county,  and  it  was  dangerous  to  assist  him  in  any  way ; 
so  great  was  the  danger  that  all  shrank  from  it.  In 
this  hour  of  emergency  I  felt  a  call  to  action,  and 
without  question  or  hesitation  resolved  to  take  all  risk, 
brave  all  danger  and  trust  God  for  help. 

From  that  moment  a  new  life  seemed  born  with- 
in, and  my  young  mind  began  its  life  effort.  Saui 
was  concealed  and  fed  until  his  strength  was  restored ; 
then  one  moonlight  night  at  midnight  he  gave  the; 
signal  of  his  presence  and  I  joined  him  and  started 
Jiim  on  the  Underground  Railroad.  At  parting  he 
embraced  me,  with  streaming  eyes,  saying,  ^'God  bless 
you  forever  for  this,^'  then  disappeared  in  the  shad- 
ows and  was  gone. 

In  that  hour  it  seemed  to  me  the  w^hole  future 
of  slavery  was  opened  to  my  mind's  eye,  and  inspira- 
tion entere<:l  my  heart  that  ever  after  sustained  and 
guided  me  in  all  my  contact  and  conflict  with  slavery. 
This  act  established  my  fitness  for  the  post  of  dan- 
ger, from  which  I  never  shrank.  My  brother  Alfred 
was  as  brave  and  determined,  but  his  ability  was  in 
the  direction  of  general  manager,  instead  of  conduc- 
tor, and  soon  we  were  in  council  with  old  men  around 
many  a  midnight  fire  in  the  dark  forests,  laying  plans, 
devising  ways  and  means  and  essential  preliminaries; 
even  now  I  see  the  strong  contrast  between  the  beard- 
less bovs  and  the  errav-headed  men.     Yes,  and  the 


OF    ADDISON    COFFIN.  41 

eagerness  with  which  the  old  men  woukl  listen  to  uiy 
reports  of  success,  in  spite  of  danger  and  difficulty. 

Though  my  tendency  to  second  sight  had  been 
measurably  overcome,  yet  the  spirit  of  the  inheritance 
enabled  me  to  read  the  faces  and  capacity  of  fugitives 
with  almost  unerring  certainty.  If  we  saw  a  fugi- 
tive had  not  the  mind  or  judgment  to  imderstand  the 
secret  of  the  business,  he  or  she  was  sent  back  to  his 
or  her  master,  for  failure  and  recapture  meant  "'Geor 
gia  and  the  rice  swamps."  I  will  say  here  that  at 
no  time  or  under  no  circumstance  did  we  solicit  or 
advise  a  slave  to  leave  his  master;  that  was  no  part  of 
our  business.  Others  did  that,  we  only  looked  after 
those  who  came  to  us  asking  help. 

It  would  fill  a  large  book  to  give  the  principal 
events  connected  with  the  Underground  Railroad 
from  ^orth  Carolina  from  1819  to  1852.  Mother 
was  familiar  with  and  knew  all  that  transpired  up  to 
the  time  brother  and  I  filled  father's  place.  One  of 
the  romantic  features  was  the  white  slaves  that  came 
to  us  for  help,  and  those  put  in  our  hands  to  be  sent 
away  by  their  father-masters;  many  of  those  whitft 
slaves  grew  to  man  and  womanhood  ignorant  of  theii 
parentage,  or  origin;  others  were  only  known  by  us 
after  they  crossed  the  Ohio  River.  Some  revelations 
that  could  have  been  made  would  have  been  more 
than  a  seven-days'  wonder,  but  a  few  years  more,  and 


42  LIFE    AND    TRAVELS 

all  secrets  will  be  sealed  up  forever  in  death,  so  far 
as  this  life  is  concerned.  Sometimes  in  spite  of  facts, 
of  faces  and  things,  in  thinking  on  this  part  of  life, 
I  seem  to  be  living  in  a  new  world,  walking  among 
a  new  race  of  humanity.  When  I  go  back  to  the 
scenes  of  those  eventful  days,  and  look  into  the  bright, 
kindly  faces  of  the  grandchildren  of  men  who  sixty 
years  ago  would  have  shot  me  down  at  sight  if  found 
on  my  secret  mission,  it  fills  me  with  emotions  that 
cannot  be  expressed,  and  I  thank  God  that  my  heart 
is  full  of  love  and  kindness  to  those  young  lives,  who 
are  all  unconscious  of  the  events  of  the  past.  I  walk 
about  saying  in  my  heart,  thank  God,  thank  God, 
thank  God. 

About  this  period  of  my  life  another  event  trans- 
pired that  was  far-reaching  in  my  memory,  and  was 
a  severe  test  in  after  years.  From  1832  to  1835  there 
was  much  discussion  and  excitement  about  the  re- 
moval of  the  five  Indian  tribes  from  Georgia  and  Up- 
per ^NTorth  Carolina.  Soon  after  a  '^treaty  of  re- 
moval" was  agreed  upon.  John  Koss  and  William 
Lewis,  chiefs  of  the  Cherokees,  were  deputed  to  go 
to  Washington  to  settle  the  details  of  the  cession  of 
lands  for  other  lands  in  the  Indian  Territory,  etc.,  etc. 
The-se  two  chiefs  came  to  Xew  Garden  to  counsel  with 
Friends,  and  get  Jeremiah  Hubbard,  who  was  one- 
fourth  Indian  (Cherokee),  to  go  with  them  to  Wash- 


OF   ADDISON   COFFIN.  43 

ington.  When  thej  came  to  New  Garden  they  at- 
tended the  regular  meeting  on  the  Sabbath;  at  its  close 
the  chiefs  went  out  in  the  yard,  and  the  people  formed 
a  half -circle  in  front;  the  object  of  their  journey  was 
explained  and  discussed  at  length.  During  the  dis- 
cussion John  Ross  drew  a  paper  from  his  pocket  and 
read  a  paragraph,  which  was  an  expression  of  Presi- 
dent Andrew  Jackson's  opinions  on  the  Indian  ques- 
tion, he  being  hostile  to  all  Indians.  Dr.  George 
Swain  asked  what  paper  it  was.  Ross  replied,  '^Thc 
National  Intelligencer,  published  by  Gales  and  Sea- 
ton." 

Jeremiah  Hubbard  was  an  eloquent  and  gifted 
minister  among  Friends,  and  was  then  in  the  prime 
of  manhood,  and  personally  acquainted  with  President 
Jackson.  The  council  resulted  in  Jeremiah  Hub- 
bard's going  with  the  chiefs.  He  proved  of  great 
value  to  the  Indians.  Jackson  recognized  him  at 
once,  and  gave  him  a  kindly  reception,  and  in  the  end 
granted  all  he  asked,  remarking  to  some  politicians 
"That  it  was  so  eminently  reasonable,  and  at  the  same 
time  just."  The  most  interesting,  important  and  far- 
reaching  portion  of  the  treaty  was  the  proviso  that  no 
spirituous  liquors,  or  any  intoxicating  drink,  should 
ever  be  imported,  distilled  or  sold  in  the  Ten"itor\, 
with,  power  to  forever  enforce  the  proviso. 

More  than  fifty  years  passed  by.      The  Cherokee 


44  LIFE    AND    TRAVELS 

tribe  of  Indians  proclaimed  to  the  world  that  they 
wanted  all  people  everywhere  who  had  Cherokee 
blood  in  them,  to  come  home,  establish  their  geneal- 
ogy and  become  citizens  of  their  beautiful  and  fertile 
country.  Among  the  many  who  presented  them- 
selves to  claim  citizenship  were  the  descendants  and 
blood  kin  of  Jeremiah  Hubbard.  In  theii-  hunt  for 
evidence  it  developed  that  I  was  the  only  living  person 
who  could  give  an  account  of  the  visit  of  the  two  chiefs 
to  ]^ew  Grarden.  I  was  called  on  to  go  to  Tahlequa, 
the  Cherokee  capital,  to  give  evidence  before  the  coun- 
cil of  tribal  officei*s.  The  trip  to  and  from  Tahlequa, 
the  strange  combinations  of  events,  the  experience  be- 
fore the  council,  and  the  week's  sojourn  among  the 
Cherokees.  was  another  ch)sing  up  of  episodes  in  my 
sti'ange  life. 

My  memory  was  a  sui-prise  to  the  Cherokee  Coun- 
cil, and  they  put  it  to  a  severe  test;  they  tried  to  shake 
me  up  on  the  names  of  the  two  chiefs;  they^  were 
brothel's  and  both  named  Ross,  but  I  persisted  in  call- 
ing them  John  Ross  and  William  Lewis.  After  all 
efforts  to  confuse  my  line  of  memory  had  failed,  the 
President  of  the  Council  said,  *'\Ye  will  have  to  ad- 
mit that  you  are  certainly  correct  in  your  evidence, 
and  I  compliment  you  on  y^our  firmness  in  adhering 
to  what  you  believe  to  be  true ;  the  names  of  the  chiefs 
were  John  and  William  Lewis  Ross."  I  further 
learned  that  the  Cherokee  records  confirmed  everv 


OF    ADDISON    COFFIN.  45 

essential  fact  I  lia<l  lieanl  from  l^nele  Joseph  Hub- 
bard, the  father  of  Jeremiah,  whose  first  wife  was  a 
half-blood  Cherokee. 

As  an  item  of  history  it  may  be  proper  to  add  that 
the  Hubbard  blood  gained  the  right  to  citizenship, 
but  not  to  a  share  in  the  annuity  from  the  United 
States  government.  They  have  a  very  beautiful  and 
prosperous  colony  at  Afton  in  the  northern  part  of 
the  Cherokee  nation  or  tiibe. 

There  was  a  free  negro  named  Arch  Curry,  liv- 
ing near  our  home,  who  died  a  few  years  after  father. 
His  widow^'s  name  was  Vina;  she  was  the  washer- 
woman for  the  boarding-school  for  several  years.  She 
was  shrewd  and  discerning,  and  would  suffer  her 
husband^s  free  papere  to  be  stolen.  This  was  done 
fifteen  times  to  my  knowledge.  When  an  intelligent 
fugitive  presented  himself,  who  would  fill  Arch  Cur- 
ry's standard,  and  there  were  one  or  more  families  of 
trusty  emigrants  going  West,  the  free  papers  were 
stolen,  and  the  fugitive  sent  through  as  a  free  man  to 
liCvi  Coffin,  w^ho  returned  the  papei*s  in  safety.  This 
was  done  occasionally  with  other  papers,  but  none 
were  ever  used  like  those  of  Arch  Ctirry. 

Another  secret  trick  my  brother  taught  the 
slaves  was  to  take  dropsy,  rheumatism,  erysipelas,  etc., 
and  to  appear  as  diseased  or  unsound,  so  they  would 
not  sell  on  the  market.     The  dropsy  was  brought  ot\ 


46  LIFE    AND    TRAVELS 

by  bandaging  the  limbs  until  they  were  swollen  and 
purple;  it  is  true  this  was  quite  painful  at  first,  buc 
the  slaves  were  willing  to  suffer  to  escape  being  sold 
south.  Rheumatism  was  produced  by  bandaging 
above  and  below  the  joint  on  arm  or  leg,  and  erysipe- 
las by  rubbing  any  part  of  the  body  a  few  times  with 
hot  burdock  root  boiled  down  to  a  very  strong  tea;  this 
latter  was  the  most  severe,  but  most  deceptive  and 
effectual.  Strange  as  it  may  seem,  these  tricks  were 
never  detected  nor  divulged  until  after  the  war,  when 
it  caused  quite  a  sensation  in  some  families. 

Whether  providential  or  natural,  probably  both, 
from  the  night  I  started  my  first  passenger  on  the  I^n- 
derground  Railroad,  my  growth  in  body,  strength  and 
activity  was  very  remarkable.  At  the  age  of  sixteen 
I  weighed  162  pounds,  and  have  never  varied  ten 
pounds  since,  excepting  in  long  sickness.  Ever  after 
that  my  poAvers  of  endurance  and  swiftness  on  foot 
were  my  distinctive  characteristics;  I  could  also  staud 
long  privations  of  sleep  and  rest,  which  fitted  me  more 
and  more  for  my  post  of  danger. 

The  establishing  and  opening  of  New  Garden 
Boarding-School  opened  a  new  world  not  alone  to  me, 
but  to  all  my  young  associates.  All  the  preliminary 
arrangements,  the  begiuning  of  the  work,  the  sknv 
progress  and  final  completion  of  the  building  was  1o 
us  a  source  of  deep  and  lively  interest;  it  opened  up 


OP   ADDISON    COPFIN. 


47 


to  us  a  new  field  of  imaginations,  aspiration  and  ambi- 
tion. Though  the  circle  of  our  lives  had  been  very 
small,  we  could  unders^tand  that  the  school  could  and 
would  have  a  great  influence  upon  our  future  lives, 
and  when  the  school  was  opened  the  first  day  of  Sep- 
tember, 1837,  we  all  felt  the  inspiring  influence;  imag- 
ined in  our  minds  that  we  too  would  one  day  be  in- 
mates of  the  institution,  and  then  enter  on  a  higher 
and  grander  life,  and  the  larger  portion  did  live  to 
attend  at  least  one  session,  but  we  had  to  learn  that 
life  was  still  intensely  real. 

I  entered  the  school  midwinter  of  1841,  and  was 
there  three  months,  until  the  spring  term  of  1842.  It 
was,  indeed,  a  new  life  to  me,  and  my  mind  was  so 
hungry  for  light  and  knowledge,  that  I  studied  as 
a  half-famished  man  devours  food;  all  my  time  was 
spent  in  studying  and  reading,  discussing  and  specu- 
lating. In  figures  and  algebra  I  was  second  grade, 
but  geography,  chemistry,  philosophy,  astronomy, 
surveying,  geometry,  mensuration,  construction,  me- 
chanics, etc.,  etc.,  it  required  little  effort  to  master. 
Brother  Alfred  and  I  were  the  first  to  study  and  finish 
Burritt's  ''Geography  of  the  Heavens,"  though  we 
had  no  help  in  starting;  we  soon  obtained  a  thorough 
knowledge  of  the  system,  often  staying  out  until  mid- 
night, tracing  the  constellations  and  naming  the  prin- 


48  LIFE    AND    TRAVELS 

cipal  stai's,  and  we  never  lost  our  interest  in  this  sub- 
lime study. 

After  leaving  the  school,  the  balance  of  1842 
and  the  early  part  of  1843  was  spent  at  home  on  the 
farm.  My  younger  brother  had  arranged  to  manage 
the  farm  and  go  to  school  at  the  same  time,  and  T 
worked  diligently  to  get  everything  in  good  shape  for 
him,  and  made  especial  effort  in  repairing  fences  and 
building  new  ones.  All  the  time,  niffht  and  day,  I 
was  thinking  and  planning  my  future  in  the  great  un- 
known world,  for  with  the  exception  of  one  direction, 
I  ]iad  not  been  more  than  twenty  miles  from  homo, 
and  consequently  my  territorial  knowledge  was  very 
limited.  The  life  of  anxiety  and  extreme  danger  1 
was  leading  was  rendering  me  nervous,  excitable  and 
suspicious  of  all  my  surroundings;  there  was  a  con- 
stant sense  of  danger  resting  on  my  heart,  a  presenti- 
ment of  impending  peril,  that  made  it  clear  to  my 
mind  that  a  change  must  be  made;  this,  with  my  life- 
long desire  for  travel,  made  it  a  matter  of  serious 
thought. 

During  the  winter  I  formulated  a  program  for  a 
part  of  the  coming  year,  namely,  to  go  to  Indiana, 
spend  the  remainder  of  1843  in  that  State  among  rel- 
atives and  friends;  then  in  1844  join  Col.  Fremont's 
exploring  expedition  and  go  with  him  until  he 
reached  the  Pacific  coast,  and  from  there  go  to  Ore- 


OF    ADDISON    COFFIN.  49 

gon,  and  if  satisfied  with  the  country,  make  that  my 
futnre  liome,  where  1  would  he  forever  beyond  the 
influence  of  slavery,  and  possibly  spend  the  rest  of 
my  life  in  peace;  besides,  Oregon  had  a  peculiar  fasci- 
nation for  me.  I  had  purchased  Washington  Irving's 
work  entitled  ^^Astoria,"  or  "The  History  of  the  Free 
Trade,"  in  which  was  related  all  the  adventures,  tri- 
als, and  disaster  of  John  Jacob  Astor's  attempt  to 
colonize  Oregon  in  1812  to  1814.  I  had  also  read 
the  '^^arratives  of  Captains  Clark  and  Lewis'  Explor- 
ing Expedition  in  1804  to  1806/'  "Gosses  Journal," 
"Greely's  Adventures,"  etc.,  etc. 

A  special  friend,  George  Bow^man,  who  had  bf^en 
to  Indiana  before,  was  expecting  to  go  again  in  May, 
and  to  go  on  foot;  this  met  my  ideal,  so  preparation 
was  made  for  my  departure.  Although  a  moment- 
ous event  to  the  family  as  well  as  to  me,  the  prepara- 
tion consisted  in  making  a  good  suit  of  home-made 
clothes,  a  few  extra  undergarments,  a  good  pair  of 
shoes  and  hat,  all  home  production,  except  the  hat. 
The  clothes  were  put  in  a  little  knapsack  made  of  cot 
ton  drilling,  with  straps  so  as  to  hang  on  the  back. 
This,  with  thirty-seven  dollars  and  fifty  cents,  was  my 
outfit  and  fortune. 


SECOND  CHAPTER 


First  Year  of  Travel. 


Trip  to  Indiana — Crossing  tlie  mountains — First 
steamboat  ride  from  Charlestown  to  Cincinnati — 
Seeing  the  lii*st  large  city — Walking  back  into 
Ohio,  and  then  to  Richmond,  Indiana — First  Im- 
pressions— Attending  first  x\bolition  convention. 
— Going  to  and  stopping  at  Spiceland — Trip  to 
State  Abolition  convention  in  Grant  county — 
Return  to  Richmond,  and  Indiana  Yearly  Meet- 
ing— Giving  to  Bloomfield  on  the  Wabash — 
Winter  school — Going  to  New  Orleans  on  a  flat- 
boat  in  the  spring  of  1844 — Return  to  Indiana  -  - 
Life  program  broken  up — Return  to  North  Car- 
olina in  the  fall. 

On  the  morning  of  May  3d,  1843,  I  stepped 
out  of  my  home,  with  a  heart  full  almost  to  bursting, 
with  a  storm  of  contending  emotions,  which  I  have 
never  been  able  to  describe.  My  traveling  compan- 
ion was  a  man  of  superior  ability,  kind  hearted, 
(50) 


OP    ADDISON    COFFIN.  51 

thouglitfiil  and  prudent,  yet  withal  a  jovial,  enter- 
t-aining  chara(iter.  lie  at  once  saw  my  pent-up  emo- 
tions and  kindly,  but  wisely,  diverted  me  away  from 
my^lf  by  initiating  me  into  the  art  of  traveling,  and 
the  reality,  as  well  as  the  wonder  and  beauty,  that 
lay  in  the  land  to  which  we  were  going.  The  first 
day  and  night  wa:^  a  sore  trial  with  me;  the  second 
day  we  came  in  full  view  of  the  Blue  Ridge  Moun- 
tains, w^hich  were  so  wonderful  and  new  that  the  in- 
tensity of  my  feelings  was  somewhat  relaxed,  and  the 
third  day  I  began  to  let  go  of  home  emotions  and  en- 
ter into  the  new  world  of  beautiful,  wild  mountain 
scenery  that  lay  before  and  around  me.  My  com- 
panion, with  his  kind  discernment,  still  led  me  on  and 
out  of  myself,  until  he  had  me  wholly  absorbed  witli 
mountains,  the  mountaineei-s  and  our  interesting  jour- 
ney. We  took  the  Blue  Mountain  route  as  better  j 
suited  to  horsemen  and  footmen,  than  to  loaded  wag- : 
ons.  In  crossing  Peter's  Mountain  we  left  the  road 
and  climbed  to  the  highest  summit,  from  which  there 
is  one  of  the  finest  mountain  scenes  in  the  world.  1 
have  been  to  the  place  since  that  eventful  trip,  I  have 
also  been  in  every  state,  territory,  province  and  coun- 
ty on  the  continent,  and  visited  every  nation  in  Eu- 
rope, and  yet  can  say  that  scene  from  Peter's  Moun 
tain,  in  West  Virginia,  is  one  of  the  most  beautiful 
and  sublime  that  I  have  ever  seen,      lliere  are  many 


52  LIFE    AND    TRAVELS 

more  fearful  ajid  terrible,  many  more  sublimely  loiie 
and  desolate,  but  tliey  lack  the  sublimity  of  beauty. 

We  also  passed  through  the  gorge  of  Xew  River, 
known  as  Xew  River  cliffs,  which  compares  well  with 
anything  of  the  kind  in  any  part  of  Europe.  We 
crossed  the  Kanawha  River  at  the  falls,  and  went 
down  on  the  east  side  to  the  celebrated  salt  work-  at 
Molden,  twelve  miles  above  Charlestown. 

Though  1  have  seen  many  new  and  interesting 
places  since  1843,  that  trip  has  not  lost  its  fresh- 
ness, nor  its  events  faded  from  recollection.  There 
w^ere  'many  wayside  incidents  that  were  interesting 
and  amusing.  It  was  bright,  spring  Aveather,  very 
pleasant  for  walking,  we  were  stout  and  healthy,  and 
oft'Cn  indulged  in  fording  creeks  and  rivers  instead  of 
ferrying;  we  would  pull  off  shoes  and  stockings,  coal 
and  vest,  and  hold  them  above  water  and  cross  the 
swift  streams,  enjoying  the  cool  bath  and  the  excite- 
ment of  stemming  the  swift  current  and  stumbling 
over  the  sticks  and  stones  on  the  bottom ;  a  brisk  walk 
in  the  sun  would  soon  dry  our  clothes,  and  we  would 
push  on  with  light  hearts  and  nimble  feet.  Forty 
miles  per  day  was  our  regular  day's  walk.  It  was  ex- 
ceedingly interesting  to  stop  over  night  with  the  moun- 
taineers, and  we  often  talked  until  a  late  hour  with 
them.  George  Bowman  was  an  old  school  teacher, 
with  pleasing  and  Avinning  address,  and  could  charu) 


OF   ADDISON   COFFIN.  53 

the  cliildren  and  young  folks  with  his  anecdotes  and 
stories,  while  I  was  somewhat  speculative  and  knew 
how  to  antagonize  their  opinions  and  prejudices  in  '^ 
way  to  get  up  a  discussion  or  argument.  Many  times 
we  were  not  charged  for  our  night's  lodging,  our  host 
saying  we  had  more  than  paid  our  bills  in  talk,  and 
invited  us  to  come  again.  This  experience  and  lesson 
in  talking  my  way  through  was  not  lost  on  me,  but 
has  been  improved  on  up  to  this  date,  and  I  shall 
ever  give  George  Bowman  credit  and  gratitude  for  the 
lesson  learned  in  my  first  start  out  in  life.  We  would 
sometimes  become  so  interested  in  the  grand  scenery, 
the  geologic  fonnations,  the  vast  upheavals  and  dis- 
placement of  the  rock  strata  that  we  would  forget  all 
about  time  and  distance,  and  find  ourselves  at  the 
close  of  the  day  mthout  seeming  to  have  been  con- 
scious of  the  day's  walk. 

At  Charlestown  we  found  a  steamboat  ready  to 
start  for  Cincinnati;  and  my  curiosity  was  wrought 
up  to  such  a  point  that  I  wanted  to  take  a  ride.  Tt 
would  take  me  out  of  my  route  and  make  more  walk- 
ing in  the  end,  but  w^ould  not  discommode  my  friend; 
so  to  my  intense  delight  we  went  aboard.  T  had 
never  seen  anything  of  the  kind,  and  was  worse  than 
an  eager  child,  because  I  anticipated  and  could  un- 
derstand more.  I  was  soon  running,  climbing, 
scrambling  and  aisking  questions,  much  to  the  amufle- 
4 


54.  LIFE    AND    TRAVELS 

meet  of  the  crew,  and  old  river  men,  yet  my  unre 
strained  eagerness,  and  simplicity  soon  won  the  good 
will  of  all  on  board.  AVhen  night  came  there  was  no' 
sleep  for  me,  the  night  scenes  and  work  was  as  inter- 
esting as  those  of  the  day,  so  my  excitement  knew  no 
stop  until  we  landed  at  Cincinnati ;  and  there  I  stepped 
off  into  a  still  greater  wonder,  it  was  the  fii*st  city  I 
had  ever  seen;  its  rush  and  roar,  and  the  crowds  that 
thronged  some  of  the  principal  streets  was  perfectly 
bewildering.  The  hundred  steamboats  moored  at  the 
landing,  and  in  motion  was  astounding  to  my  bewail - 
dered  senses;  the  immense  piles  of  merchandise  and 
products  of  the  country,  the  thousands  of  pork  bar- 
rels in  sight  and  boat  loads  of  bulk  meat  were  almost 
past  belief  to  me.  My  friend  had  been  to  the  city 
before  and  was  much  amused  at  my  whole  perform- 
ance and  staring  about,  but  he  determined  to  spend 
an  extra  day  in  showing  me  the  Queen  City,  as  it  was 
called,  which  was  adding  to  my  already  over-charged 
head  almost  more  than  it  could  hold;  but  under  his 
guidance  and  judgment  I  came  out  safe,  but  w^ell  nigli 
exhausted  in  body  and  mind. 

At  Cincinnati  I  parted  from  my  friend  for  a  time, 
he  going  direct  to  Greensboro,  Henry  County,  Ind., 
where  his  mother  and  two  brothers  lived.  I  started 
northeast  into  Ohio  to  find  friends  and  relatives,  who 
lived  there.     Mv  walk  of  one  hundred  miles  was  ih 


OF    ADDISON    COFFIN.  55 

vain,  for  my  relatives  had  moved  to  western  Indiana, 
where  I  afterwards  found  them;  but  in  this  walk,  new 
revelations  canie  to  me  at  every  turn.  Many  settle- 
ments had  been  made  in  thirty  years,  and  many  beau- 
tiful fanns  had  been  opened  in  the  vast  forest,  the 
fields  were  clear  of  trees  and  stumps,  and  were  green 
with  grass  and  grain,  presenting  a  picture  of  bright 
home  life  in  such  striking  contrast  wdth  the  old  wasted 
sedge  fields  and  gullies  of  the  slave  states,  that  it 
seemed  like  walking  in  fairy  land,  and  gave  promise 
of  what  it  now^  is.  I  remember  well  as  I  walked  along 
the  road  between  Dayton  and  Eaton  among  beautiful 
farms,  bright  happy  homes,  amidst  life  and  activity, 
that  the  sad  tears  would  fall  that  in  the  midst  of  such 
a  scene  I  was  a  homeless,  wandering  boy,  wholly  with- 
out knowledge  of  the  spirit  that  seemed  to  animate 
the  people  among  whom  1  was  moving:  but  while  my 
tears  were  falling  I  made  another  resolve,  to  have  a 
home  somewhere  at  sometime  like  those  around  me, 
and  forty  years  from  that  time  I  had  a  home  as  bright 
and  green  as  they,  and  from  the  depths  of  my  hear) 
thanked  the  Lord  for  strength  to  make  it  so. 

T  arrived  in  sight  of  Richmond,  Ind.,  near  sun- 
dowm  tired,  dusty,  and  worn,  but  the  sight  seemed  to 
reanimate  my  ^veary  body.  '^Richmond,  Indiana,"  I 
had  been  taught  from  childhood,  was  the  great  center 
of  Carolina  emigration,  and  the  Jerusalem  of  Quaker- 


56  LIFE    AND    TRAVELS 

ism  for  all  the  northwest,  and  at  last  I  had  lived  to 
see  it  in  all  its  quiet  sunset  beauty.  I  walked  with  a 
light  step  down  into  the  town  and  put  up  for  the  night 
at  a  Carolina  Hotel.  Next  morning  early  I  was  out 
inquiring  for  relatives  and  fnends,  and  soon  found 
them;  they  gave  me  a  warm  shake  of  the  hand  and  a 
kindly  welcome  to  their  home  for  my  father  and 
mother's  sake,  in  every  instance  they  referred  to  my 
f athei'^s  fame  as  a  manumissionist,  and  frequently  said, 
^'We  need  him  so  much  now." 

Sometimes  T  was  kept  talking  all  day  and  until 
a  late  hour  at  night,  rehearsing  the  adventures  of  the 
UndergTOund^  Railroad,  and  the  present  situation  of 
the  south ;  and  I  began  to  learn,  and  to  take  note  of  the 
location  of  my  father's  co-workers  in  the  past;  after 
.spending  a  week  around  Richmond,  I  hastened  on  ro 
IS'ewport,  now  more  celebrated  than  Richmond.  There 
had  been  a  separation  in  Indiana  Yearly  Meeting  of 
Friends,  about  one  year  before,  on  the  subject  of  abol- 
ishing slavery  and  the  Anti-slavery,  or  Abolition 
Yearly  Meeting  was  established  at  I^ew}x>rt;  and  be- 
i^ides  that  town  had  become  the  headquarters  of  all 
the  Underground  Railroads,  with  Levi  Coffin  as  pres- 
ident, hence  my  anxiety  to  reach  that  point,  and  it  was 
with  a  swelling  heart  that  I  entered  the  town  and 
found  the  depot.  The  reception  given  me  by  Cousin 
Levi  Coffin  and  wife  was  as  though  a  long  absent  son 


OF    ADDISON    COFFIN.  57 

had  returned  Kome  to  see  fatiier  arid  mother,  and  for 
many  days  it  was  a  feast  of  souls.  I  could  give  the 
situation  at  the  old  home,  and  in  turn  take  new  les- 
sons in  the  new  life  and  surroundings,  for  all,  all  was 
new.  I  was  kindly  received  by  all  classes,  and  by 
both  the  anti-slavery  and  pro-slavery  part  of  the  people, 
for  it  was  a  time  of  intense  excitement,  both  in  church 
and  state,  though  the  anti-slavery  party  was  in  the  polit- 
ical minority,  they  more  than  made  it  up  in  energy 
and  ability,  they  were  largely  Nantucket  emigrants 
from  North  Carolina,  and  the  older  ones  were  manu- 
missionists  from  the  C/arolina  scho<:>l  of  Benjamin 
Lundy,  and  being  whale  fishermen  in  the  past,  they 
were  now  fishers  of  men,  and  it  was  exceedingly  inter- 
esting to  hear  the  contending,  (]el>ating,  declaming, 
denouncing,  \dlifying,  swearing,  and  vulgarity  that 
filled  the  community.  It  was  still  not  uncommon  foi' 
abolition  speakers  to  be  mobbed  and  abused;  even 
ladies  were  grossly  insulted  by  the  ruffian  pro-slavery 
element:  egging  speakers  was  common. 

Even  to-day  I  look  back  to  my  first  introduction 
into  Hoosier  politics  with  bewilderino-  astonishment. 
The  pro-slavery  portion  of  the  community  treated  me 
kindly,  and  seeme<l  anxious  to  hear  my  st^tement^^  of 
the  spirit  of  the  slave  power  in  the  south.  One  pomt, 
that  T  could  always  get  the  better  of  them,  was  my 
abilitv  to  give  their  Carolina  genealoi>v,  which  many 


58  LIFE    AND    TRAVELS 

times  put  them  to  the  blush  by  contrast.  It  was  al- 
most universal  for  ministers  of  the  gosj^el  to  run  into 
the  subject  of  slavery  in  all  their  sermons ;  neighbors 
would  stop  work  and  argue  pro  and  con  across  the 
fence;  people  traveling  along  the  road  would  stop  and 
argue  the  point;  at  mills,  stores,  shops,  everywhere  it 
was  abolition,  pro-slavery,  nigger,  amalgamation,  nig- 
ger wives,  and  all  other  such  words  were  fully  indulge<I 
m.  Beside  all  this  jx>litical  turmoil  there  were  a  scor; 
of  isms  and  ologies  proclaimed  abroad;  mesmerism, 
Fourierism,  phrenology,  non-resistance,  Grahamism, 
etc.,  etc.  The  whole  country  was  like  a  huge  pot  in  a 
furious  state  of  boiling  frothing  over;  and  it  would 
have  taken  more  than  human  sagacity  to  have  fore- 
seen the  final  or  even  probable  end.  Yet  violent  agi- 
tation did  not  prevent  the  steady  gi-owth  and  develop- 
ment of  the  country,  which  was  rapidly  recovering 
from  the  panic  of  1837  to  1839,  everywhere  new  fields 
were  beins:  cleared,  new  houses  built,  large  commo- 
dious bams  were  erected,  orchards  were  being  planted, 
good  roads  were  being  constructed  from  the  interior 
to  the  Ohio  and  Wabash  rivers.  Chicago  was  begin- 
ning to  be  known  as  a  place  of  trade,  the  Wabash  and 
Erie  canal  was  building,  and  when  compared  with 
I^orth  Carolina,  Virginia  and  Kentucky,  what  I  saw 
was  truly  a  wonderland  to  me,  and  I  could  feel  new 
thoughts,  new  ideas,  new  aspirations  entering  my  soul 


OF    ADDISON    COFFIN.  59 

and  opening  up  to  me,  a  new  life.  I  was,  indeed,  away 
from  slavery,  but  not  from  its  agitation  and  vehement 
discussion. 

Making  Levi  Coffin's  home  my  stopping  place  1 
visited  at  least  lifty  of  the  old  manumissionists,  and 
enjoyed  the  kindlv  hospitalitv.  and  took  in  new  lessons 
of  Hoosier  life ;  with  the  Whig  and  pro-slavery  portion 
of  the  community,  I  was  a  welcome  visitor  for  I  could 
lead  out  on  new  lines  of  argument,  and  interest  them 
in  my  Underground  Kailroad  experience  in  spite  of 
their  violent  prejudices. 

On  the  second  day  of  June,  1843,  there  was  to  be 
an  abolition  convention  held  at  Dalton,  a  little  villago 
in  the  northwest  comer  of  Wayne  County,  and  I  was 
invited  to  go.  In  company  with  Levi  Coffin,  William 
Starbuck,  Daniel  Pucket  and  Dr.  Henry  Way,  1 
started  on  the  interesting  trip,  listening  with  eager  at- 
tention to  the  conversation  of  those  stanch  representa- 
tives of  the  coming  revolution.  When  we  reached 
the  convention  I  was  pleased  with  its  make-up,  there 
were  about  two  hundred  people  assembled  from  the 
neighboring  counties,  all  substantial  looking  men  and 
women,  four-fifths  of  them  Carolinians  and  of  Caro- 
lina descent,  and  over  half  bore  l^antucket  names,  as 
Coffin,  Gardner,  Worth,  Starbuck,  Folgier,  Macy, 
Swain,  Hussey,  etc.,  etc.,  and  all  had  a  look  of  deep, 
unflinching  pui*pose  in  their  eyes.     To  my  surprise  the 


60  LIFE    AND    TRAVELS 

subjec'te  discussed  were  almost  identical  with  those  of 
the  mannmissionists  in  N^orth  Carolina  twenty  years 
before,  and  some  of  the  speakers  when  young  men  had 
discussed  them  in  the  south.  "Immediate  and  Un- 
conditioned Emancipation  of  Slaves''  was  the  burden 
of  all  discussion,  and  the  watch-word  was  "Free 
thought,  free  speech,  free  soil,  free  labor,  and  free 
men."  Some  of  the  discourses  were  grand  and  in- 
spiring, and  the  few  Pro-slavery  Whigs  in  attendance 
sat  in  silent  thoughtfulness,  and  at  times  mnced  un- 
der the  seething  denunciation  of  northern  freemen 
affiliating  with  southern  slave-holders.  At  the  end 
of  three  days  the  convention  closed,  and  all  went  home 
strengthened  and  edified. 

From  Dalton  I  went  to  the  town  of  Milton  to 
some  neighl)ore,  who  emigrated  a  few  years  before, 
and  to  see  some  special  friends  of  my  parents.  While 
walking  through  the  thick  forest  on  the  way,  I  met 
my  friend,  George  Bowman,  an  unexpected,  but  glad 
meeting  to  both;  he  was  ^^siting  friends  in  that  part, 
and  turned  out  and  went  my  way,  and  we  made  \dsits 
together  for  two  days.  From  Milton  my  steps  were 
turned  toward?  Spiceland  in  Henrs^  County,  where  I 
found  Louviea  AVhite,  the  widow  of  Isaac  White,  who 
ran  with  my  father  to  rescue  John  Dimery  from  th(3 
kidnappers;  my  mother  could  not  have  given  me  a 
warmer  welcome  than  she  did,  and  I  felt  that  I  was 


OF    ADDISON    COFFIN.  61 

safe  from  danger.  T  was  now  in  one  of  the  most  in- 
teresting anti-slavery  neighbor}ic»o(ls  in  that  part  of 
the  state ;  it  was  largely  made  up  of  old  neighbors  and 
friends  from  New  Garden,  N.  C. :  Whites,  Unthank, 
Hiatt,  Stanley,  Macy,  Gordon,  Meredith,  etc.,  etc., 
and  everywhere  I  had  a  glad,  kindly  reception;  I  was 
admitted  into  homes,  family  circles  and  kindly  friend- 
ship. In  a  Aveek,  or  ten  days,  an  old  neighbor,  Eli 
Unthank,  was  going  to  Cincinnati  with  a  four-horse- 
team  of  ])roduce  and  I  was  given  the  chance  to  go 
with  him;  this  I  was  very  anxious  to  do,  as  it  would 
give  me  another  lesson  in  Hoosier  life.  Eli  Unthank 
had  been  a  teamster  in  North  Carolina,  and  was  a  vet- 
eran in  the  business.  I  was  keenly  alive  to  all  that 
passed  on  this  trip  of  100  miles,  and  had  another  op- 
portunity of  seeing  the  Queen  City,  and  the  bustli} 
of  its  every  day  life. 

While  in  the  city  I  found  John  Thomas  Moore, 
who  was  huckstering  produce  sent  him  from  near 
Cambridge  City,  Ind.  He  and  I  had  grown  up  to- 
gether and  were  considered  tolerably  steady  in  some 
ways,  but  we  yielded  to  an  o'ermastering  temptation 
and  stole  away  one  night  and  went  to  a  theater,  a  thing 
we  had  been  taught  was  very  wicked,  so  we  felt  giiilty 
when  we  got  up  next  morning,  and  tried  to  think  u]> 
many  mitigating  excuses  to  ease  our  guilty  con- 
sciences. But  the  memory  of  the  scenes  enacted  that 
ni^ht  are  as  bright  to-day  as  when  I  saw  them  }»er- 


62  LIFE    AND    TRAVELS 

formed.  lu  this  connection  I  will  say  that  I  was  sat- 
isfied almost  for  life  with  theaters,  in  all  my  travels 
never  attended  any  more  excepting  once  in  New 
Orleans,  and  once  in  San  Francisco. 

On  the  i-^tum  trip  we  stopped  one  evening  to 
camp  as  usual  as  I  thought,  but  I  noticed  my  old  vet- 
eran fed  and  rubbed  the  horses  with  extra  care,  and 
prepared  an  extra  supper;  and  about  the  usual  time 
he  told  me  to  turn  in.  and  rest,  I  did  so  and  was  soon 
sleeping  soundly;  how  long  after  I  could  not  tell,  a 
violent  shaking  suddenly  aroused  me,  and  I  realized 
the  wagon  was  in  motion;  looking  out  in  alarm  I  saw 
the  old  teamster  in  the  saddle  driving  steadily  along 
the  road,  and  a  long  log  causeway  had  shaken  me  up ; 
it  was  bright  moonlight,  and  taking  in  the  situation,  I 
lay  down  and  knew  no  more  until  about  daylight,  I 
was  called  to  get  up  and  have  breakfast ;  we  got  back 
to  Spioelaud  that  evening,  and  I  was  asked,  ''How 
many  nights  did  Eli  drive  all  night  ^"  for  it  was  his 
custom  to  do  that  on  the  return  trip. 

To  my  surprise  a  two  months'  school  had  been 
made  up  for  me  during  my  absence.  I  entered  on 
my  duties ;  for  here  was  another  opportunity  for  me  t6 
learn,  as'  well  as  the  children ;  for  during  the  time  T 
learned  much  of  the  spirit  of  the  young  people ;  and  to 
some  extent  entere<i  into  their  social  hopes  and  fears, 
loves    and    antipathies,     prospects    and    aspirations. 


OF   ADDISON    COFFIN.  63 

Though,  peculiar,  untrained,  odd  and  awkward,  yet 
my  clairvoyant  make-up  enabled  me  to  see  and  leani 
as  much  or  more  of  them,  as  they  saw  of  me;  friend- 
ships f oi*med  during  those  pleasant,  happy  days  remain 
wai*ni  and  fresh  to-day,  lapse  of  time  has  not  changed 
them.  While  teaching  I  made  my  home  with  Wil- 
liam and  Rebecca  Unthank,  who  were  friends  and 
neighbors  of  my  parents.  He  saw  that  I  needed 
parental  cai*e  and  took  me  in,  yes,  into  their  kind  and 
happy  family,  which  deed  of  kindness  will  be  amoug 
the  last  things  I  shall  forget. 

Four  miles  from  Spiceland  was  Greensboro,  lit- 
tle less  notorious  than  Newport.  One  of  the  marked 
characters  of  that  generation,  Seth  Hinshaw^,  lived  in 
the  town;  he  was  a  man  of  great  power  of  mind  and 
unyielding  determination,  once  satisfied  that  he  was 
right,  no  human  being  could  change  him.  He  wa.^ 
an  enthusiastic  advocate  of  abstaining  from  the  use 
of  slave  grown  products,  and  had  a  sitore  in  which 
free  labor  goods  were  sold;  when  customers  complained 
at  his  prices  being  above  the  ordinary,  he  would  say, 
^'That  will  test  thy  conscience,  whether  it  is  worth  any- 
thing or  not.''  The  free  labor  goods  were  all  a  frac- 
tion higher  than  slave;  but  Brother  Hinshaw  was  tol- 
erably well  patronized.  His  house  was  the  meeting 
place  of  all  grades  of  reformers,  or  setters  forth  of 
new    doctrines — Mesmerism,    Grahamism,    Spiritual- 


64  LIFE    AND    TRAVELS 

ism,  Socialism  or  Foiirierism,  etc.,  etc.,  beside  being 
headquarters  for  all  abolition  speakers  and  lecturers. 
When  the  now  celebrated  Frederick  Douglass  first 
visited  Indiana  in  1843,.  Seth  Hinshaw  defied  public 
opinion  and  prejudice,  took  Douglass  home  with  him 
and  treate<:l  him  as  a  white  man,,  and  in  the  end  put 
his  neighbors  to  shame.  Such  a  character  had  a  pow- 
erful influence  in  and  on  the  community,  and  as  a  re- 
sult there  was  no  place  where  the  abolition  sentiment 
was  deeper,  or  more  firmly  seated,  for  there  was  good 
soil  in  which  to  sow  seed,  the  town  and  surrounding 
country  were  settled  Vvy  North  Carolinians. 

I  made  frequent  A^sits  to  Greensboro  and  through 
the  surrounding  country,  traveling  on  foot,  much 
muddy  road  could  be  avoided  and  distance  saved  by 
going  from  point  to  point  through  the  tall  forests, 
which  still  covered  more  than  half  the  country,  and 
in  mid-summe"  were  delightful  and  cool;  then,  as  at 
this  day,  I  always  had  a  small  magnetic  needle  to  guide 
me  in  all  my  wanderings. 

At  the  close  of  my  school  I  joined  a  party  of  six 
young  people  who  were  going  to  an  abolition  state  con- 
vention at  the  place  where  Jonesboro,  in  Grant  Countv, 
now  stands,  about  three  days'  journey  from  Spiceland, 
part  of  the  route  being  through  an  almost  new  country ; 
there  were  often  several  miles  drive  through  the  forest 
without  a  house,  and  over  very  stumpy  roads.      W':' 


OF    ADDISON    COFFIN.  65 

were  in  a  good  farm  wagon,  drawn  by  two  strong  horses 
with  a  skillful  driver,  making  altogetlier  an  interest- 
ing and  romantic  trip.  One  night  we  stopped  at  a 
large  log  house;  on  entering  I  was  astonished  and 
greatly  pleased  to  find  the  widow  of  Emsley  George, 
an  old  neighbor  to  my  mother;  they  had  moved  west 
several  years  before,  and  1  did  not  expect  to  meet 
them  again.  The  widow  and  1  sat  up  until  a  late  hour 
telling  the  history  of  the  old  neighbors  during  the  in- 
tervening years,  and  next  morning  she  said  I  paid  the 
bill  for  all  the  company  with  talk. 

The  conventi(m  was  very  interesting  to  me.  There 
I  saw  two  or  three  hundred  men  and  women,  many 
of  whom  had  come  a  hundred  miles  over  the  rougii 
roads,  through  the  dark  forests  in  a  hot  sun,  with  no 
prospect  of  compensation,  and  with  but  little  hop©  for 
anything  in  the  near  future  but  misrepresentation, 
abuse,  slander,  contempt  and  possibly  personal  vio- 
lence, yet  they  were  there  to  discuss  the  constant 
growth  and  aggressions  of  the  slave  power,  and,  if  pos- 
sible, to  arouse  their  fellow  countrymen  to  a  realiza- 
tion of  the  danger  there  was  to  the  life  of  the  nation. 
There  were  two  prominent  al>olitionists  from  Massa- 
chusetts, and  Frederick  Douglass,  the  freed  slave,  who 
was  the  center  of  attraction.  Even  in  his  beginning  his 
hidden  might  was  discernible  to  my  mind  and  plainly 
foreshadowed  what  a  power  he  was  destined  to  be  in 


66  LIFE    AND    TRAVELS 

tiie  nation.  He  did  not  know  the  hidden  lire  that 
needed  but  an  awakening  hour  to  set  it  burning  in  his 
heart. 

During  the  discussions  in  the  convention  tho 
declaration  of  James  G.  Bumey  was  repeated  in  con- 
nection with  the  future  of  slavery,  ''Slaver}^  was  in- 
stituted by  violence,  is  maintained  by  violence,  and 
will  die  by  violence."  Several  speakers  did  not  ap- 
prove of  the  declaration,  and  when  it  was  embodied  in 
a  resolution  it  was  voted  out;  then  an  amendment  was 
offered,  so  as  to  read — ''and  if  not  peaceably  abolished 
will  die  by  violence,"  this  was  carried  by  a  unanimous 
vote.  The  whole  procedure  of  the  convention  was  a 
revelation  to  me  and  I  was  learning  beyond  my  ability 
to  store  away  in  my  memorv^,  which  resulted  in  neiwous 
prostration,  and  I  had  to  remain  in  the  neighborhood 
several  days  after  the  close,  and  my  young  compan- 
ions reluctantly  left  me  behind  and  returned  home. 
This  was  providential,  otherwise,  I  should  have  gone 
with  Frederick  Douglass  to  Pendleton,  a  town  twenty 
miles  northeast  of  Indianapolis,  where  he  was  booked 
to  speak,  and  where  one  of  the  most  exciting,  disgi^ace- 
ful,  brutal,  revolutionizing  mobs  took  place  that  ever 
occurred  in  Indiana. 

The  public  speaking  was  held  in  the  open  air,  q 
slight  platform  was  raised  for  the  speakers  and  for  the 
elderly  ladies.      Soon  after  Frederick  Douglass  began 


OF    ADDISQN    COFFIN.  67 

to  sjx'ak,  a  half  dniiiken  mob  of  several  hundred  bnital 
men  and  boys  came  on  the  ground  armed  with  com 
cutters,  clubs  and  stones,  and  began  swearing,  shout- 
ing and  using  foul  mouthed  language.  As  soon  as 
the  stone-throwing  began,  the  men  in  the  audience 
hastily  surrounded  the  women,  to  protect  them  from 
the  missiles;  but  the  mob  rushed  upon  them  like 
demons,  knocked  many  down,  and  rudely  pushed 
women  over  and  backw^ards,  and  in  one  case,  brutally 
kicked.  Frederick  Douglass  was  the  object  of  their 
great-est  fury,  he  was  defended  for  a  time,  but  his 
friends  w^ere  overpowered,  and  he  attempted  to  save 
himself  by  flight,  but  was  pursued  by  howling  devils, 
for  eighty  or  one  hundred  rods,  then  knocked  down, 
beaten  and  left  for  dead.  Some  young  men  who  were 
there,  afterwards  went  through  the  war  of  the  rebel- 
lion, and  they  say  thev  never  saw  in  all  the  war  a  more 
brutal,  murderous  scene  in  any  battle  anywhere. 
There  w^ere  many  seriously  hurt;  many  bore  the  marks 
of  their  wounds  for  life.  The  news  of  this  outrage 
spread  like  wildfire  over  Indiana,  Ohio,  Illinois  and 
Michigan,  and  aroused  a  spirit  of  indignation  among 
all  honorable  people  and  caused  hundreds  to  join  nl 
once  the  abolition  party. 

Was  it  Providential  I  was  left  at  Greensboro? 
I  am  at  least  thankful  I  did  not  see  the  sight. 

It  was  now  the  fall  of  the  year,  and  Indiana  Year  • 


68  LIFE    AND    TRAVELS 

Ij  Meeting  of  Friends  held  at  Richmond  was  near  at 
hand,  so  my  stej>s  were  turned  in  that  direction,  the 
journey  was  through  new  counivj,  much  of  it  thinly 
settled,  but  full  of  interest.  One  place  especially  had 
then  and  afterwai-ds  much  interest  to  me.  It  was  an 
ash  swamp  two  and  a  half  miles  across  and  several  long; 
there  was  a  causeway  made  of  split  logs,  and  poles 
across  it  straight  as  a  line,  a  person  standing  at  either 
end  could  see  across  as  through  a  tunnel.  In  the 
swamp  the  timber  grew  so  thick  that  it  looked  dark 
and  forbidding  and  j>art  of  the  year  was  covered  with 
water.  Thirty  years  later  I  passed  that  way  again, 
the  swamp  was  gone,  and  in  its  place  were  beautiful 
farms,  and  homes,  a  country  not  to  be  excelled  for 
beauty  in  the  state.  The  land  had  been  ditched  and 
drained,  it  wsls  so  fertile  that  everv  square  rod  had  been 
cleared  and  was  under  cultivation,  to  me  it  seemed  like 
magic,  and  it  was  hard  to  realize  the  marvelous  change, 
but  the  old  log  hotel  was  still  standing,  with  an  un- 
broken record,  and  it  was  a  reality. 

Indiana  Yearly  meeting  was  associated  with  the 
memories  of  all  my  life,  and  was  the  embodiment  of 
all  that  was  great  and  good,  the  larger  portion  of  my 
relatives  were  amone*  its  members,  more  than  half 
the  people  I  had  ever  known  in  life  had  removed  and 
settled  in  its  limits,  besides  its  membership  was  scat- 
tered through  Ohio,  Indiana,  Illinals,  Michigan  and 


OF   ADDISON   COFFIN.  by 

Iowa  and  at  its  annual  gatherings  there  were  people 
from  the  extremes  of  six  to  eight  hiinch*ed  miles  apart, 
many  of  them  making  the  journey  on  horseback; 
women  oftentimes  rode  one  hundred  miles  on  horses 
and  thought  it  no  hardship.  AVith  all  this  on  my  mind 
it  was  little  wonder  that  I  expected  it  to  be  one  of  en- 
during way  marks  in  my  future,  and  when  the  thou- 
sands assembled  on  the  public  days  my  ideal  was  fully 
realized. 

During  the  business  sessions  I  watched  with  ob- 
serving interest  the  spint  which  animated  the  vast 
audience.  There  was  splendid  talent,  f ai-seeing  judg- 
ment, with  high  intellectual  ability  stamped  upon  the 
faces  of  many  present,  but  the  greater  number,  though 
above  the  average  of  their  generation,  were  not  above 
the  influence  of  human  passion,  human  prejudice  and 
preference.  It  was  evident  that  the  meeting  was  still 
agitated  by  the  effects  of  the  separation,  that  had  taken 
place  one  year  before,  when  a  large  number  of  the 
more  sanguine  abolitionists  revolted  from  the  pro- 
slavery  element  as  they  characterized  them  and  set  up 
an  "Anti-slavery  Yearly  Meeting,"  at  I^ewport.  For 
four  days  I  attended  the  sessions,  and  watched,  saw, 
heard,  felt  and  read  the  minds  of  the  prominent  actor<=, 
and  stowed  in  memory  enough  for  a  small  history. 
No  one  for  a  moment  dreamed  that  the  awkward  Caro- 
lina boy  in  his  home-spun  clothes  was  reading  and  re- 

5 


70  LIFE    AND    TRAVELS 

meinbering  eveiything  that  was  said,  done  and  in  some 
cases  thought. 

One  of  the  hundreds  of  incidents  of  life  was  con- 
nected with  my  attendance  at  the  Yearly  Meeting. 
While  stopping  at  Spiceland  the  summer  before,  there 
oame  several  young  people  from  Flat  Rock  east  of 
there  to  attend  Spiceland  Quarterly  Meeting;  they 
stopped  at  Uncle  William  Unthank's  Sabbath  after- 
noon. They  were  of  the  high  toned,  wealthier  class, 
well  dresvsed  and  very  nice  looking,  Init  woe  to  me  with 
my  home-spun  clothes  and  home-made  shoes,  etc.  Thr; 
youngsters  from  Flat  Rock  made  life  bitter  for  me 
that  day  with  their  fun  and  heartless  jokes,  rough 
sport;  making  a  virtue  of  neceSvsity  I  did  not  resent  or 
retort,  though  it  was  very  galling  to  my  nature.  I 
took,  however,  a  lasting  imprass  of  their  featurf^'^, 
forms,  words,  and  gestures  and  stored  it  up  in  my  mem- 
ory. At  Yearly  Meeting  I  met  part  of  them  again  and 
received  similar  treatment,  but  it  was  less  trying. 
Twenty  years  from  that  time  the  leader  of  that  Flat 
Rock  party  drove  up  to  my  house  in  a  one  horse  hack 
containing  tin  troughing  for  houses,  which  he  sold  for 
his  emplover;  he  was  threadbare  and  looked  dejected 
At  first  sight,  all  the  memory  of  the  past  came  to  mind 
like  a  burning  fire,  but  it  passed  in  a  moment,  and  when 
I  took  him  by  the  hand,  it  was  with  difficulty  the  tears 
of  sorrow  and  sympathy  were  restrained,  and  I  thanked 


OP   ADDISON   COFFIN.  71 

the  Lord  for  putting  it  in  my  heart  to  forgive  the  past 
and  return  kindness  for  unkindness.  Misfortune  fol- 
lowed that  man  through  life,  and  he  died  poor  and 
afflicted,  but  it  was  a  lesson  not  to  be  forgotten  to  me 
and  mine. 

After  attending  three  days  of  business  sessions 
at  Richmond,  I  went  to  Newport  and  attended  two 
days  of  the  Anti-slavery  Yearly  Meeting  to  see  and 
learn  its  leading  spirit,  and,  as  at  Richmond,  was  alive 
to  all  that  transpired.  Though  in  the  midst  of  con- 
genial spirits  and  old  friends,  it  was  apparent  to  my 
mind  that  the  anti-slavery  friends  though  in  the  right 
and  full  of  enthusiasm  had  made  a  serious  mistake  in 
separating  from  the  pro-slavery  Friends.  Thoy  had 
mthdrawn  all  the  leaven  from  the  body  that  needed 
leavening,  and  had  a  surfeit  where  little  was  needed. 
They  should  have  remained  with  the  church  and  suf 
fered,  prayed,  pleaded  and  reasoned  on  until  the  whole 
lump  was  leavened.  All  parties  saw  this  in  a  few 
years,  and  were  again  united,  but  the  labor  of  half  q 
generation  was  lost  in  the  unhappy  separation.  Among 
the  most  noted  was  Martha  Wooten,  a  minister,  and 
the  second  speaker  in  eloquence  at  that  time  in  Amer- 
ica. Lucretia  Mott  was  admitted  by  all  people  to  have 
been  the  most  sublimely  eloquent  preacher  in  the 
English  language,  when  in  her  prime,  and  Martha 
Wooten  was  next  and  to  my  ear  and  heart,  was  the 


72  LIFE    AND    TRAVELS 

equal.  'Tis  said  that  Tom  Corvvin  caught  his  highest 
touch  of  eloquence  while  listening  to  Lucretia  Mott  in 
Philadelphia. 

While  at  Richmond  I  met  Alfred  Haldey,  from 
Bloomfield,  in  Parke  County,  who  was  an  intimate 
friend  and  co-worker  with  mj  father  in  their  young 
days;  he  invited  me  to  go  to  Bloomfield,  now  Bloom- 
ingdale,  and  teach  their  winter  school ;  this  was  condi- 
tionally agreed  to — provided  I  got  there  in  time. 

Here  I  want  to  say,  while  attending  the  Yearly 
meeting  at  Richmond,  I  met  and  f  onned  an  acquain  c- 
ance  with  Rowland  T.  Reed,  then  just  grown,  In- 
diana's most  gifted  and  most  neglected  poet.  I  had 
seen  and  memorized  his  poem,  '^Autumn  Evening 
Thoughts,"  published  in  the  'Tree  Labor  Advocate" 
1841,  and  had  an  especial  desire  to  meet  him.  When 
we  met  it  was  as  kindred  spirits,  and  we  formed  a 
friendship  that  was  never  broken,  until  his  untimely 
death  some  years  ago;  he  married  my  Sister  FrieuLl 
Drucilla  A.  Unthauk,  and  through  her  the  friendship 
still  lives. 

Returning  from  Xew^port  to  Spic eland  I  spent  a 
few  days  and  then  started  westward,  going  by  Carth- 
ag'e  and  Walnut  Ridge  where  many  friends  and  ac- 
quaintances lived;  from  there  I  went  to  Whitelick,  in 
Morgan  County,  going  through  Indianapolis,  then  :i 
small  town.     Late  one  evening,  footsore  and  tired  T 


OF    ADDISON    COFFIN.  73 

reached  Benjamin  White's  iiouse,  near  Mooresville, 
one  of  my  heels  had  been  blistered  and  was  quite 
painful.  Aunt  Mary  White,  my  father's  cousin,  and 
sister  to  Levi  Coffin,  acted  the  part  of  a  tender  mother, 
took  me  in,  poulticed  my  foot,  and  took  oare  of  mo 
until  in  traveling  order.  This  stop  wa^  especially 
pleasant  and  lasting  in  the  friendships  fonned  with  the 
family,  the  evenings  being  spent  in  stories  from  the  old 
home  land  and  lessons  in  pioneer  life,  and  Hoosier 
characteristics. 

The  next  journey  was  to  Spring,  in  Hendricks, 
my  home  county,  where  some  of  the  nearest  Carolina 
neighbors  had  settled,  with  a  large  acquaintance,  a 
week  was  spent  there  then  the  last  stage  of  forty  miles 
was  begun.  There  were  several  large  creeks  to  cross 
with  no  bridges,  or  boats,  and  the  weather  was  getting 
oool,  but  the  old  habit  of  fording  was  again  practiced 
and  no  bad  results  followed  the  cold  baths.  A  part 
of  the  trip  was  through  what  was  then  new,  rough 
country,  in  many  places  the  road  was  poor  even  for 
walking,  but  now  a  beautiful  pike,  straight  as  a  line 
runs  through  a  succession  of  fine  gTazing  and  grass 
lands,  with  the  streams  all  spanned  with  steel  and  iron 
bridges,  built  by  the  state  and  counties,  a  marvelous 
change. 

Annapolis,  north  of  Bloomfield  two  miles,  was 
then  a  village  of  some  note  and  business;  my  arrival 


74  LIFE    AND    TRAVELS 

at  the  town  was  about  sunset  and  I  went  directly  to 
my  old  teacher,  neighbor,  and  friend,  Dr.  Horace  F. 
Cannon,  who  bid  me  a  joyous  welcome,  and  my  jonr 
ney  for  the  winter  ended;  but  I  soon  learned 
that  the  people,  the  business,  the  lay  of  the 
land  and  all  the  envu'onments  were  differenc 
from  the  central  part  of  the  state.  Espe- 
cially was  there  a  marked  change  in  the  business  of 
the  people.  The  Wabash  river  with  its  tributaries 
was  then  one  of  the  busy  marts  of  the  northwest;  it 
furnished  an  outlet  to  a  large  portion  of  Indiana  and 
Illinois;  there  was  a  fleet  of  river  steamers  on  its 
waters,  and  thousands  of  flat  boats  were  constructed 
on  the  bank  of  the  river  and  the  creeks  holding  from 
60  to  200  tons  of  freight,  all  of  which  were  loaded  and 
floated  down  stream  each  spring  to  New  Orleans.  It 
was  the  ambition  of  nearly  all  the  boys  to  take  at  least 
one  flat  boat  voyage  to  l^ew  Orleans,  and  return  oy 
steamer.  Many  of  the  middle-aged  men  were  as 
familiar  with  Xew  Orleans  as  their  home  towns,  and 
with  the  3000  miles  of  river  as  with  home  county 
roads.  This  condition  of  business  and  line  of  trade 
gave  the  whole  population  a  strong  local  character, 
like  sailor  language  and  phrases  of  seaport  cities,  so  ii 
was  on  the  Wabash;  there  were  many  boatmen  words 
and  phraser  in  common  use  among  all  the  people  uf 
which  thev  were  unconscious.      The  wild,  free  life  of 


OF   ADDISON   COFFIN.  75 

a  boatruan  gave  tone  and  impress  to  the  business  and 
business  people,  there  was  a  broader,  higher  impulse 
in  their  characters  that  was  distinctive  to  a  stranger, 
and  it  was  the  character  of  the  people  on  that  river 
that  first  originated  the  term  "Wild  West."  In  those 
earlj  days  there  was  magic  in  the  name  in  any  river 
town  anywhere  between  the  mouth  of  the  Wabash 
and  New  Orleans ;  if  a  boatman  was  in  trouble  or  dan- 
ger he  only  needed  to  raise  his  voice  and  shout  "Wa- 
bash, Wabash,  Wabash,"  three  times  and  then  pause 
a  moment,  then  repeat  it  and  in  an  instant  every  Wa- 
bash man  within  hearing  caught  up  the  cry  and  rushed 
to  the  rescue,  and  soon  there  would  be  a  throng  of 
fearless  boatman  on  hand,  and  woe  be  to  the  evil- 
doers, who  fell  into  their  hands;  they  were  not  only 
brave,  but  honorable  and  just,  and  50  of  them  could 
defy  municipal  law  in  any  city.  One  time  in  New 
Orleans,  a  Wabash  man  was  arrested  on  a  fraudulent 
claim,  and  was  being  taken  to  the  lock-up,  when  he 
shouted  Wabash,  and  in  five  minutes  a  hundred  men 
took  him  from  the  oflftcers,  and  aboard  an  up-river 
steamer  nearly  ready  to  start.  The  civil  oflftcers  sum- 
moned a  posse  of  80  armed  men,  and  attempted  to 
retake  the  man,  then  the  cry  of  "Indiana,  Indiana, 
Indiana"  was  raised,  and  in  fifteen  minutes  500  In- 
dianians  and  other  up-river  men  were  on  hand.  Th'^ 
posse  was  scattered  like  wild  deer,  and  the  boatmen 


76  LIFE    AND    TRAVELS 

cleared  the  wharf  until  the  steamer  sailed,  then  dis- 
persed as  quickly  as  though  nothing  had  happened. 
People  animated  with  this  spirit,  and  engaged  in  this 
kind  of  life  were  the  kind  I  now  found  myself  sojourn- 
ing among.  My  old  neighbors  who  had  emigrated 
from  five  to  twenty  years  before  had  fallen  into  the 
same  spirit,  and  did  not  seem  to  know  they  were 
changed;  to  me  it  was  interesting  to  note  and  study 
this  transition,  and  I  gave  them  the  name  of  Hoosier 
Carolinians. 

Some  days  were  spent  visiting  before  my  school 
began ;  there  were  several  relatives  on  the  Cofiin,  Ves- 
tal and  ^ewlin  side  of  the  family  and  all  were  living 
within  a  few  miles  of  Bloomfield  and  Annapolis.  Al- 
fred Hadley's  house  was  the  Underground  Railroad 
station  on  the  Wabash  route,  so  I  was  among  old  neigh- 
bors, old  friends,  and  in  connection  with  some  old  bus 
iness,  making  new  surroundings  very  agreeable. 

The  school  was  large  and  consisted  mostly  of 
growTi  up  young  people,  w^ell  advanced,  which  made 
it  very  interesting,  and  responsible  for  here  again 
memory  was  taken  for  superior  ability,  and  I  was  con 
scious  of  it,  consequently  was  in  trouble  in  mind  much 
of  the  time  lest  the  students  should  be  disappointed 
in  their  anticipations,  but  the  vschool  seemed  to  give 
satisfaction  to  all  parties.  There  was  a  literary  so- 
ciety connected  with  the  school  that  was  well  attended, 


OF    ADDISON    COFFIN. 


77 


tlie  public  debates  were  especially  interesting  when 
the  subject  of  slavery  was  under  discussion,  the  spirit 
of  the  county  being  strongly  pro-skvery,  and  hostile 
to  public  discussion,  but  the  school  sympathized  with 
me,  and  freedom  of  speech  was  secured.  Female 
suffrage  was  fii*st  discussed  that  winter  and  it  raised  a 
stonn  of  opposition,  and  I  had  to  face  the  storm  alone, 
at  the  beginning.  Mrs.  Swishhelm  was  then  publish- 
ing her  Woman's  Rights  paper  at  Pittsburg,  Pa.,  and 
quite  a  number  of  copies  were  secured  for  the  occa- 
sion, which  sowed  seed  that  has  borne  abundant  fruit. 

As  the  spring  of  1844  opened  the  wdiole  country 
was  astir  with  preparations  for  the  boating  season. 
Thousands  of  barrels  of  flour  had  been  packed  by  the 
millers,  wheat  had  been  put  in  barrels,  thousands  of 
barrels  of  pork  were  ready  for  shipping,  hundreds  of 
thousands  of  pounds  of  bulk  pork  were  in  the  packing 
houses,  and  another  article  entirely  new  to  me — thou- 
sands of  dozens  of  chickens,  ducks,  and  geese  were 
collected  readv  for  the  southern  market.  Every  in- 
terest was  looking  after  its  own  progress,  which  made 
lively  times;  hundreds  of  men  had  been  busy  all  win- 
ter building  flat  boats  to  float  this  immense  surplus  <-o 
market — and  above  all,  all  along  the  river  banks  were 
com  pens  with  an  almost  unlimited  supply  of  corn 
ready  for  any  market  that  opened. 

Amid  all  this  stir  and  push  it  was  little  wonder 


78  LIFE    AND    TRAVELS 

that  I  caught  the  fever  and  determined  to  take  a  trip 
^'Down  the  river''  and  see  the  wonderful  ''Door  to  the 
sea."  So  at  the  close  of  my  school  I  booked  as  a  boat- 
hand  at  the  bow,  or  foi-^vard  oar,  on  Washington  Had- 
ley's  flat  boat,  which  was  80  feet  long,  16  wide  and 
drew  three  feet  of  water.  The  load  was  300  baiTels 
of  flour,  90  barrels  of  pork,  40,000  pounds  of  pork,  250 
dozens  of  chickens  and  several  barrels  of  eggs.  An- 
other man,  Joseph  Battard,  was  also  loading  a  boat 
that  was  going  as  consort,  and  the  two  to  lash  when 
they  reached  the  mouth  of  the  Ohio.  The  boat  was 
loaded  in  Sugar  CVeek,  near  Annapolis  and  pulled  out 
into  the  Wabash,  and  down  a  few  miles  to  Montezuma 
where  the  ship  supplies  were  taken  aboard,  and  then 

on ,  1844,  we  cast  loose  and  were  afloat 

for  a  3000  miles'  run,  which  to  me  was  another  new^ 
phase  of  life,  and  another  life  lesson.  The  Wabash 
at  that  time  was  far  more  picturesque  and  charaiinfi: 
and  had  nearly  twice  the  volume  of  water  that  it  has 
to-day;  its  banks  were  clothed  with  magnificent  for- 
ests, which  cast  their  deep  shadows  over  its  dark  water, 
like  a  cloud  at  noonday,  and  at  night  was  weird,  solemn 
and  terrible.  To-day  the  forests  are  gone,  and  the 
river  looks  dwarfed  and  lifeless,  few  boats  of  any  kind 
are  seen,  and  the  grandfathers  tell  of  boatman  stories 
of  the  past.  In  a  few  days  my  hands  and  shoulders 
learned  the  art  of  heaving  at  the  oar,  and  T  was  soon 


OF   ADDISON    COFFIN.  79 

equal  to  the  best,  and  in  addition  soon  learned  to  row 
a  skiff  on  the  roughest  waves,  or  strong-est  wind  that 
came. 

Everything  was  so  new  and  charming  that  for  a 
week  I  slept  but  little,  was  on  deck  listening  to  stories 
of  the  pilot,  or  steersman,  and  learning  the  art  of  steer- 
ing. The  boat  was  steered  by  an  oar  24  feet  long, 
nicely  balanced  on  an  iron  pin  in  the  middle  of  the 
stern,  the  blade  or  water  end  was  nicely  shaped  like  an 
oar  with  the  blade  six  feet  long  and  eighteen  inches 
pivot  to  give  it  great  strength;  a  strong  skillful  man 
could  exert  an  immense  force  with  this  long  sweep, 
and  turn  the  seemingly  unwieldy  boat  in  a  very  small 
wide;  the  beam  was  ten  inches  in  diameter  at  the 
circle  if  it  had  headway.  There  was  an  oar  amid- 
ship  on  the  right  hand  side,  and  a  bow  oar  on  the  left 
hand  side  about  twej^^e  feet  from  the  bow,  this  was  my 
oar,  about  14  feet  long,  the  other  oar  was  18  feet. 
One  hand  worked  the  bow  and  two  amidship. 

Pulling  at  the  oar  was  not  a  regular  business,  the 
boat  was  always  intended  to  float  with  the  current,  the 
oars  were  to  avoid  drifts,  snags,  sand  bars,  skirt  land  ^, 
eddies  and  cross  currents,  and  in  time  of  "liigh  wind  it 
was  no  child's  play  to  keep  from  being  driven  ashore, 
yet  it  was  all  a  wild,  free  life,  there  was  a  feeling  among 
all  boatmen  that  they  were  cut  loose  from  all  the  world 


BO  LIFE    AND    TRAVELS 

and  beyond  all  human  law,  much  like  a  sailor  out  on 
the  limitless  sea. 

Often,  under  favorable  weather  a  boat  would  not 
touch  land  for  many  days,  though  the  crew,  or  a  part, 
of  them  might  land  every  day; -oft  times  it  was  their 
pastime  to  take  the  skiff  and  row  ahead  many  miles, 
land  in  the  cane  break,  at  the  cotton  fields,  the  town.-^ 
and  immense  wood  yards,  where  steamers  stopped 
to  take  on  wood  for  fuel.  It  was  also  a  favorite  amuse- 
ment to  visit  neighboring  boats,  that  were  always  in 
sight,  the  salutation  being,  ''Where  are  you  from?'' 
and  the  name  of  the  river  was  always  given,,  and  by  the 
time  we  had  reached  the  mouth  of  Red  river  w^e  had 
seen  boats  from  fifty,  or  more  rivers.  This  naturally 
brought  the  boatmen  in  contact  wdth  each  other  from 
widely  separated  points,  and  gave  them  a  breadth  of 
geography  and  business  knowledge  that  was  surpris- 
ing to  eastern  and  southern  people.  Here  in  this  wild, 
free  boating,  was  reai^ed  and  prepared  a  race  of  hardy 
men,  ready  w^hen  the  time  came  to  march  westward 
and  take  possession  of  half  a  continent  and  finish  the 
foundation  of  our  wonderful  nation. 

Soon  after  starting  I  was  installed  as  cook  on  our 
lx)at,  and  always  managed  to  have  plenty  to  eat,  what 
it  lacked  in  style  was  made  up  in  good  appetites.  The 
supplies  were  all  we  could  ask.  There  were  chickens, 
eggs  in  abundance,  any  amount  of  ham,  two  or  three 


OF    ADDISON    COFFIN.  8! 

barrels  of  apples,  potatoes,  and  all  other  vegetables, 
bntter,  cheese,  kraut  and  all  that  hnngry  men  could- 
think  of,  and  that,  too,  in  every  form  that  any  or  all 
our  mothers  had  ever  devised.  Washington  Hadley 
was  an  excellent  carver,  and  we  all  took  lessons  in  ar- 
tistic cai-ving.  Eggs  were  eaten  in  every  form  be 
tween  raw  and  egg-nog.  Coffee  and  tea  were  made  in 
all  the  strength  and  weakness  of  which  these  two  bee- 
erages  were  capable.  Both  sides  of  the  bread  were 
sopped  in  home-made  maple  molasses;  when  a  fresh  can 
of  home-made  butter  was  opened  there  was  no  stint  in 
its  promiscuous  use,  etc.,  etc.  Yet  in  the  living  there 
was  as  much  difference  among  the  boats,  as  at  th^ 
homes  of  the  boatmen,  on  some  the  food  was  scarce  and 
poorly  cooked,  and  frightfully  dirty.  So  it  was  in 
personal  habits,  some  were  nice  and  clean  while  others 
did  not  change  clothes  during  the  voyage.  It  was 
quite  a  job  to  feed  the  chickens  each  day,  to  water  and 
wash  out  the  coops  and  see  that  all  was  going  well:  nor 
was  there  silence  at  any  hour  aboard  our  boat,  for  there 
were  hundreds  of  mouths  all  crowing  or  cackling  at 
once,  but  in  a  few  days  the  ear  became  accustomed 
to  it  like  the  noise  of  machinery ;  being  cook  exempted 
me  from  any  of  this  work. 

We  floated  out  of  the  Ohio  into  the  Mississippi 
just  before  daylight,  and  according  to  universal  cus- 
tom jBred  off  all  the  guns  loaded  to  their  utmost  ca- 


82  LIFE    AND    TRAVELS 

pacit  J,  with  muzzles  held  close  to  the  water  to  inten- 
sify the  concussion,  and  in  ten  minutes  we  recognized 
the  report  of  our  Consort  Boat  close  behind  and  we 
gave  an  answering  shout.  As  soon  as  daylight  came 
they  pulled  up  and  lashed  the  boats  together  with 
strong  ropes,  the  inner  oars  on  each  being  taken  up  and 
moved  to  the  outer  side ;  my  oar  was  not  moved  and  my 
chum,  Aleck  Armstrong,  was  put  right  behind  me, 
and  from  that  time  we  swung  our  oars  on  time  like 
clock  work.  The  united  crews  now  made  a  company 
of  ten  jolly,  active  fellows,  our  stearsman  being  the 
oldest,  in  middle  life,  sober  and  steady,  and  a  good 
riverman.  Our  consort  had  a  variety  load,  but  the 
principal  was  500  dozens  of  chickens  and  100  turkeys, 
beside  oats,  flour,  wheat,  etc.,  and  drew  the  same  water, 
so  the  decks  were  even,  and  our  territory  was  now  80x 
32  feet;  the  windows  to  our  cabins  came  together,  and 
we  had  to  close  and  cut  new  ones;  but  the  music  of  500 
dozen  more  mouths  can  better  be  ima^ned  than  de- 
scribed. 

With  the  addition  to  the  companv,  with  the  new 
surroundings,  and  the  wonderful  river,  my  memory 
was  kept  to  its  highest  tension.  There  was  scarce  an 
hour  but  there  was  a  steamer  in  sight  or  sound.  They 
were  from  hundreds  of  different  ports,  Pittsburg  To 
the  northeast  to  far  up  the  Missouri  in  the  northwest. 
In  a  note-book  I  took  the  names  of  over  one  hundred 


OF    ADDISON    COFFIN.  83 

steamers  that  passed  in  the  daytime,  which  is  very  in- 
teresting to  look  over  after  a  lapse  of  fifty  years,  and 
after  the  railroads  have  nearly  destroyed  river  traffic. 

Everything  went  well  with  us  on  the  voyage;  to 
me  every  turn  in  the  river  had  a  new  sui-prise,  every 
night-watch  was  full  of  interest;  the  otherwise  still 
night  was  broken  by  the  cry  of  the  night  birds  whicdi 
filled  the  cane-breaks,  thousands  of  frogs  and  night 
animals  made  the  air  musical  with  unmusical  discord- 
ant sounds;  new  constellations  shown  in  the  southern 
sky  and  old  ones  more  clearly  defined;  the  songs  of 
lone  boatmen  who  were  keeping  watch,  sounded  sweet 
and  low  as  he  sang  the  grand  old  songs  of  love  and 
home.  Sometimes  the  wild  peal  of  a  bugle-horn 
would  burst  upon  the  ear,  or  some  homo-sick  High- 
lander would  give  the  air  of  ''Bonnie  Doon,"  or  "The 
Campbells  are  Coming,"  sometimes  elevating  his  horn 
and  sending  the  music  fioating  off  over  the  placid 
water,  then  holding  down  close  to  the  water  would 
make  it  roar  like  coming  thunder,  when  his  soul  and 
heart  were  in  the  melodv. 

We  stopped  at  ISTew  Madrid,  Memphis,  Vicks- 
burg,  ^N'atchez,  Baton  Rouge  and  Ft.  Washington; 
fifty  miles  below  Iberville  we  encountered  a  head  wind 
that  increased  to  a  gale,  and  we  took  refuge  in  a  bend 
for  several  hours ;  during  the  delay  a  part  of  the  crew 
landed  and  climbed  the  levee  and  found  we  were  on  tho 


84  LIFE    AND    TRAVELS 

border  of  a  very  large  sirgar  cane  farrri.  with  immeii'^c^, 
live  oak  trees  standing  over  the  area  in  beautiful  artis- 
tic order;  one  was  near  us,  to  this  we  hastened  and 
were  soon  clambering  among  its  wide  spreading 
branches,  from  which  we  could  see  the  far  end  of  th  o 
rows  of  cane  more  than  half  mile  away  and  a  dozen  or 
more  slaves  plomng  with  slow  going  mules,  coming 
our  way.  I  descended  and  rowed  to  meet  them;  the^; 
seemed  astonished  to  see  me  and  began  looking  un- 
easily towards  a  beautiful  mansion  in  the  distance; 
a  voice  cried  out,  ''Halloo,  there,"  looking  up  there 
was  a  man  galloping  towards  us  across  the  field,  who 
soon  came  up  and  in  a  gTuff  voice  demanded  what  I 
was  doing  there;  without  any  hesitation  I  told  him, 
and  said  that  tree  was  full  of  boys;  he  then  turned 
towards  it  and  we  walked  on  together;  to  the  question 
of  where  I  was  from,  I  said  from  North  Carolina,  and 
without  giving  him  time  to  speak,  rattled  on  telling 
of  my  trip  to  Indiana,  my  boating  and  futtire  aspira- 
tions, and  before  he  was  aware  of  it,  had  completely 
captured  him,  and  to  his  surprise,  could  talk  of  men 
he  personally  knew^;  instead  of  ordering  us  off  his 
ground  he  spent  near  an  hour  in  pleasant  conversa- 
tion, and  when  the  signal  came  from  the  boat  he  bid 
us  a  very  kindly  good-by.  I  read  that  man  at  sight 
and  knew  how  to  surround  and  take  him,  and  did 
sooner  than  expected. 


OF    ADDISON   COFFIN.  85 

We  landed  in  the  wonderful  city  in  the  forenoon, 
had  been  22  days  afloat  and  were  all  well   and  strong 
and  in  good  working  order.     The  crews  of  flat  boats 
were  always  paid  off  and  were  at  liberty  after  three 
days;  then  they  usually  did  some  trading,  sight-seeing, 
and  ofttimes  took  a  ride  to  the  gulf.     With  our  party 
this  was  done  except  myself;  I  remained  and  watched 
the  boat  until  unloaded  and  sold,  about  two  weeks. 
During  this  time  I  was  in  the  midst  of  Wonder  Land, 
had  not  seen  a  ship  of  any  kind  before;  could  hardly 
realize  there  were  so  many  ships  in  the  world  as  were 
in  port;  along  the  ship  landing  there  was  a  perfect 
forest  of  masts  and  spars,  with  a  babel  of  tongues  and 
strange,  foreign  faces.     There  were  200  river  steam- 
ers at  the  landing  all  the  time  and  2500  flat  boats; 
there  were  four  miles  of  wharf  in  front  of  the  city,  and 
all  the  distance  was  a  scene  of  life  and  bustle  that  wa=5 
exciting  and  inspiring  to  my  mind.     There  were  hun- 
dreds of  flat  boats  alongside  sailing  ships  unloading 
their  cargoes;  there    were    ships    alongside    of    river 
steamers  unloading  their  cargoes  for  inland  shipping. 
The  wharf  was  everywhere  piled  with  articles  for  ex- 
port, or  those  imported  and  the  babel  of  tongues  and 
the  clatter  and  clang  on  every  side  was  like  the  roar 
of  a  coming  storm. 

Fifty  years  passed  by,  and  then,  I  stood  on  the 
self  same  place;  again  I  looked  in  vain  for  the  old  land 
6 


^6  LIFE    AND    TRAVELS 

•marks  but  ttey  were  gone;  I  looked  for  the  old  cliar- 
-acteristics  but  could  not  find  them ;  instead  there  were 
new  sights,  new  sounds,  new  faces,  new  voices;  in- 
stead of  the  roar  of  the  passing  stonn  there  was  heard 
the  rumble  of  deep  tones  of  thunder,  the  gi'ound  trem- 
bled beneath  my  feet,  and  there  were  clouds  of  smoko 
and  steam  around  and  over  all ;  and  above  the  din  was 
heard  the  shriek  of  the  locomotive,  and  the  harsher 
and  louder  bray  of  the  ocean  steamer.  The  levee  had 
been  built  a  hundred  feet  wider  out  into  the  river;  the 
whole  extent  of  the  miles  of  wharf  was  covered  with 
railroad  tracks ;  there  Avere  hundreds  of  freight  cars  in 
motion  and  other  hundreds  still;  there  was  not  a  flat 
boat  in  sight:  a  few  lone  river  steamers  were  lying- 
miles  farther  up  the  river,  the  sail  vessels  had  dimin- 
ished one-half,  but  standing  out  above  all  were  the 
huge  ocean  steamers  into  whose  depths  a  constant 
stream  of  all  articles  of  export,  were  descending.  In- 
stead of  the  block  and  tackle  and  the  He-o-heave,  there 
was  the  ceaseless  rattle  of  steam  derrick  lifting  its 
tons  of  freight  night  and  day  without  ceasing. 

Across  the  river  where  the  steamboat  calabooses 
used  to  be,  and  a  small  stragglino-  village  on  the  bor- 
ders of  the  swamp  were  now  a  forest  of  smoke  stacks 
and  many  acres  were  covered  with  large  tugs;  there 
were  immense  steam  ferry-boats  capable  of  taking  a 
railroad  train  without  delay,  hitch,  jolt  or  jar.     The 


OF    ADDISON    COFFIN.  87 

swamp  was  covered  with  beautiful  gardens  and  su- 
burban homes.  All,  all  wa®  clianged!  In  the  city 
itself  all  was  changed,  instead  of  the  lumbering  old 
omnibus  and  lazy-going  coach,  the  street  car  glided 
along  the  level  streets  amid  new^  scenes  of  life  and  ac- 
tivity; the  Xew^  Orleans  of  1844  w^as  gone  forever;  a 
new  spirit  had  entered  into  its  innermost  life.  The 
haughty,  slave-holding  autocrat  no  longer  rode  in 
haughty  pride  through  the  street;  the  slave  now 
walked  a  free  man  and  a  citizen.  The  haughty  power 
of  slavery  was  broken  and  gone  forever;  a  new  race 
of  men  were  busy  in  its  marts  animated  by  a  new  im- 
pulse and  full  of  higher,  broader  aspirations  and  am- 
bitions. 

While  in  the  city  I  was  taken  with  the  river  fever, 
which  weakened  me  very  much  and  at  the  end  of  two 
weeks  took  steamer  for  return  to  my  nearest  friends. 
Landing  at  Evansville,  in  southern  Indiana,  I  started 
to  walk  120  miles  back  to  BkH:)mfield,  Ind.,  but  I  found 
the  fever  had  weakened  me  so  much  that  walking  was 
difficult.  Calling  at  a  farm  house  I  asked  for  a  drink 
of  milk:  the  kind-hearted  lady  looked  me  in  the  face 
a  moment  and  said,  ^'You  look  weak,  my  son,"  and 
brought  me  nearly  a  quart  of  good,  pure  milk;  I  drank 
it  like  a  hungry  child;  it  was  like  an  opiate  and  I  felr, 
relief  all  over,  then  thanking  the  lady,  who  would  noL 
receive  pay,  I  lay  down  on  the  grass  in  the  warm  sun- 


m  LIFE    AND    TRAVELS 

shine  and  slept  soundly  for  several  hours.  On  awak- 
ing I  felt  weak,  but  refreshed,  and  brave  at  heart,  and 
started  on  my  journey.  One  day  a  teamster  overtook 
me  and  pressed  me  to  get  in  his  wagon  and  ride,  but 
the  shaking  and  jolting  hurt  me  so  I  thanked  him  for 
his  kindness,  and  started  again  on  foot.  At  the  end 
of  a  week,  I  reached  Alfred  Hadley's  home  brave  and 
cheerful,  but  still  weak,  though  improving  every  day, 
I  had  been  gone  nearly  two  months,  and  was  now  in  no 
shape  for  joining  Freemont  on  his  exploring  expedi- 
tion ;  unforeseen  events  had  changed  my  program,  and 
as  it  proved  for  life. 

Alfred  Hadley  and  family  all  bade  me  welcome 
to  and  into  the  family,  for  as  mother  Rhoda  afterwards 
said,  I  looked  like  I  needed  a  mother  and  a  home ;  my 
Aunt  Ann  Hill,  who  lived  close  by  was  not  unmindful 
of  my  situation  and  gave  me  much  kind  attention.  I 
had  now  passed  my  first  year  in  the  school  of  the 
World,  and  probably  ^'ew  students  ever  learned  f  aste? 
or  remembered  their  lessons  better.  Though  nothing 
sensational  had  occurred,  and  no  startling  adventure 
had  fallen  to  my  lot,  yet  I  had  seen  and  heard  mucin 
that  in  a  few  years  was  to  move  and  influence  the  whole 
world.  The  summer  of  1844  was  spent  in  the  family 
of  Alfred  Hadley,  and  though  not  able  to  make  mo'-e 
than  half  a  hand  at  work,  I  was  all  right  in  the  Under- 
ground Railroad ;  the  Wabash  line  was  getting  in  good 


OF    ADDISON    COFFIN.  89 

ruDuing  order  and  passengers  very  frequent,  and  in 
spite  of  the  violent  and  almost  mnrderous  hostility  of 
a  majority  of  the  community,  especially  Rockville, 
the  county  seat,  the  fugitives  came  and  went  like  fleet- 
ing shadows,  defying  all  efforts  to  detect  or  prevent. 
It  was  less  difficult  to  find  the  way  from  one  station 
to  another,  the  roads  were  gradually  being  put  on  the 
land,  lines  though  rough  and  muddy,  were  straight  and 
easy  to  follow,  beside  the  stations  were  nowhere  more 
than  20  t^  30  miles  apart  and  often  friendly  homes 
between.  It  required  more  shrewd  management  than 
courage  and  daring;  the  pro-slavery  Hoosiers  invari- 
ably spent  much  time  in  swearing  what  and  how  they 
were  going  to  do,  and  they  sought  the  fugitive  when 
he  was  gone,  and  we  quietly  smiled  and  kept  still. 

The  political  campaign  of  1844  was  an  important 
one  to  anti-slavery  cause ;  Henry  Clay  was  the  Whig 
candidate,  and  James  K.  Polk,  the  Democratic,  for 
the  presidency;  during  the  contest  it  was  brought  out 
and  proved  that  Henry  Clay  had  publicly  said,  '^Two 
hundred  years  of  legislation  has  sanctioned  and  sancti- 
fied negro  slavery.  I  am  opposed  to  gradual  or  im- 
mediate emancipation."  The  Abolition  orators  made 
that  their  special  line  of  attack,  and  made  the  woods 
of  Ohio  and  Indian  a  echo  with  their  vehement  thunder. 
That  was  the  death  knell  to  Henry  Clay;  where  is  he 
to-day?  He  has  dropped  out  of  history,  while  the 
Tiame  of  Cassius  M.  Clay,  his  Abolition  cousin,  w'ill 
live  through  all  coming  time  as  the  bravest  of  the 
brave. 


THIRD  CHAPTER. 


Revisiting  the  Carolina  home  and  friends — Second 
trip  to  Indiana — Married  in  June,  1845 — Learn- 
ing to  farm — Purchase  of  land  in  Hendricks 
County — Moving  to  the  new  home,  and  begir^- 
ning  life  anew — Death  of  my  wife — Return 
again  to  N'orth  Carolina- — Bringing  my  mother, 
two  nieces,  two  cousins  and  boy  to  Indiana — Be- 
ginning again — Brother  Alfred's  amval — Sick- 
ness and  death  of  my  youngest  child — Married 
again  to  Ruth  Hadley — Exciting  political  times 
— War  of  the  Rebellion — Events  commenced 
with  the  war — Sickness  of  Brother  Alfred,  and 
death  of  Brother  Emory,  and  William  Thomas. 

Amid  the  excitement  of  the  political  campaign, 
of  mass  meeting,  pole  raising,  illuminations,  etc.,  etc., 
another  unforeseen  event  occurred,  wholly  unexpected, 
and  against  which  no  precautions  had  been  taken. 
Alfred  Hadley's  oldest  daughter,  Emily,  and  I  came 
to  the  conclusion  that  we  would  try  living  together. 
Though  by  using  a  little  exaggeration,  imagination 
(90) 


OF    ADDISON   COFFIN.  91 

and  sentiment  the  event  might  have  been  called  ro- 
mantic, in  the  eyes  of  others  it  was  similar  to  all  such 
events. 

This  was  another  decided  break  in  my  life  pro- 
gram, calling  for  some  reconstruction  and  change  of 
outline;  accordingly  it  was  settled  that  I  should  re- 
turn to  mv  home  in  Xorth  Cai'olina,  get  what  little 
was  due  me  on  final  family  arrangement,  bid  good-by 
to  home  and  countrv,  and  return  to  Indiana. 

In  the  fall  Milton  Hadley,  brother  to  my  intend- 
ed, and  I  started  on  foot;  he  to  spend  a  year  at  Nevr 
Garden  Boarding-school.  I  had  measurably  recov- 
ered my  health,  and  we  started  out  with  hearty  good- 
will. The  Madison  and  Indianapolis  Railroad,  the 
first  built  in  Indiana,  was  then  building,  and  a  con- 
struction train  was  running  to  Edenburg;  we  reached 
that  point  and  took  the  box  cars  for  Madison,  and  then 
took  steamer  for  Point  Pleasant,  and  then  set  out  on 
foot,  taking  the  route  by  way  of  the  ''Hawk's  N^est" 
on  'New  River  and  Red  Sulphur  Springs,  striking  my 
former  route  at  Peter's  Mountain,  then  followed  it 
back  home. 

My  return  was  looked  upon  as  quite  a  noted  evenr 
among  my  young  associates;  it  was  a  custom  in  those 
days  to  measure  people's  popularity  by  the  number 
of  hundred  miles  they  had  traveled,  and  the  number 
of  states  they  had  been  in.     I  had  gone  beyond  the 


92  LIFE    AND    TRAVELS 

most  popular,  and  accomplished  it  without  money,  or 
wealthy  family  influence.  This  was  cause  of  offense 
to  the  children  of  some  slaveholders,  who  had  trav- 
eled through  Georgia,  Alabama  and  Tennessee  and 
called  themselves  w^ealthy;  for  one  unknown  injthe 
higher  social  circles  to  accomplish  so  much,  and  do  it 
almost  entirely  on  foot,  was  an  insult  to  their  respecta- 
bility, and  I  had  to  suffer  scorn  and  contempt  for  the 
offense,  but  to  my  intimate  friends  it  was  cause  of  real 
joy,  and  it  did  my  heart  good  to  receive  their  kindly 
greeting,  and  the  kindness  was  returned  by  rehearsing 
my  adventures,  and  all  the  new,  beautiful,  and  won- 
derful scenes  through  which  I  had  passed. 

About  three  months  were  spent  at  home,  and  then 
arrangements  were  made  to  return  to  Indiana.  My 
mother  had  given  me  a  colt,  which  was  now  grown 
to  be  a  fine,  young  mare ;  she  also  gave  me  a  small  one- 
horse  wagon;  with  this  I  prepared  to  make  a  wintei 
journey  across  the  mountains.  On  the  second  of  Feb 
ruary,  1845,  I  again  bid  adieu  to  the  old  home  and 
loved  ones,  and  had  nice  weather  for  three  days,  but 
on  reaching  the  mountains,  met  a  severe  snow  storm 
that  lasted  three  davs,  and  the  weather  turned  very 
cold.  The  snow  drifted  very  much  and  there  was  a 
great  deal  of  ice  in  the  creeks  and  rivers  which  made 
it  difficult  and  dangerous  traveling;  in  crossing  the 
Big  Suel  Mountains  I  was  three  days  and  nights  with- 


OF    ADDISON    COFFIN.  93 

out  fire,  though  I  did  not  suffer  with  cold;  I  walked 
before  my  horse  all  the  time.  She  would  follow  me 
anywhere,  sometimes  the  drifts  were  four  feet  deep 
across  the  road,  making  cold  wading,  but  finally  the 
range  was  crossed,  and  a  safe  descent  made  to  the  banks 
of  the  Kanawha  River,  where  the  snow  was  melting 
rapidly,  and  the  mud  soon  became  more  serious  than 
the  snow.  It  took  four  days'  hard  traveling  to  go  55 
miles  from  the  Salt  Works  to  Point  Pleasant  on  the 
Ohio  River.  There  I  took  steamer  and  landed  at  10 
P.  M.  in  Cincinnati,,  the  21st.  No  journey  in  life  has 
been  more  exhausting,  or  really  more  dangerous  than 
that  one,  as  I  look  back  upon  it  now,  though  alone, 
and  surrounded  with  ice  and  snow  there  was  no  fear, 
hesitation  or  doubt;  there  was  a  secret  voice  in  my 
h^art  that  always  answered,  go,  all  is  well;  and  my 
trusty  animal  seemed  to  have  the  same  spirit  ready  to 
plunge  into  the  cold  stream,  and  flounder  through  the 
snow  drifts,  in  fact,  to  follow  wherever  I  would  lead. 

Notwithstanding,  the  22nd  of  February  was  a  cold, 
blustery  day,  the  city  was  all  astir  with  martial  pomp, 
and  all  a-flutter  with  banners  and  flags,  celebrating 
Washington's  birthday;  the  big  guns  on  the  wharf 
bellowed,  out  their  hollow  boom  over  the  water,  and 
si:ormy  drums  shook  the  freezing  air,  and  from  gray- 
headed  sires  to  almost  babes  and  sucklings  were  utter- 
ing shouts  of  glad  acclaim.     All  this  soon  ceased  to  bo 


94  LIFE    AND    TRAVELS 

interesting;  there  was  another  and  higher  attractiou. 
further  on,  and  at  10  A.  M.  the  journey  westward  was 
resumed ;  two  days'  travel  along  the  line  pike  road  now 
finished,  took  me  to  Richmond,  Ind.,  and  one  more  day 
back  to  my  Spiceland  home  with  Uncle  William  and 
Rebecca  Unthank  and  their  children. 

Here  one  cvcle  of  events  was  completed,  and  was 
on  the  eve  of  another,  the  events  in  which  were  as  un- 
known as  those  of  the  past  had  been,  but  still  that 
silent  voice  was  whispering  go. 

I  know  not  what  the  future  hath, 

Of  marvel  or  surprise, 
Assured  above  that  life  and  death 

His  mercy  underlies. 

A  week's  re^st  and  again  the  journey  was  resumed. 
The  roads  were  so  muddv  that  it  was  slow  traveling; 
the  National  road  was  so  bad  that  I  avoided  it  by  going 
aside  and  traveling  more  private  and  parallel  roads. 
Twenty  miles  was  a  hard  day's  travel,  over  pole 
bridges,  log  causeways  and  lx)ttomless  mud  slashes. 
The  thaw-out  was  on  hand,  and  in  those  days  it  took 
a  strong  attraction  to  pull  through  the  nearly  impos- 
sible country  roads.  One  thing  this  generation  cannot 
understand  about  the  travel  fifty  yeai*s  ago;  the  roads 
were  cut  out  through  the  dense  forest  of  large  trees 
and  were  full  of  stumps  in  many  places,  three  to  five 


OF    ADDISON    COFFIN.  95 

feet  in  diameter;  it  was  impossible  to  every  time  go 
around  them;  with  a  one-horse  wagon,  the  horse  had 
to  go  over  the  stump,  or  one  set  of  wheels  go  over  it, 
so  it  made  driving  a  constant  succession  of  ups  and 
do^vns,  and  sometimes  a  turn-over,  but  is  was  a  part  ot 
every  day  life,  and  had  to  be  met  and  overcome. 

About  the  20th  of  March  I  arrived  at  Uncle 
Joseph  Hill's  safe  and  sound,  but  tired  of  mud,  rain, 
and  snow;  and  at  once  began  looking  after  the  practical 
side  of  life,  by  renting  Uncle  Joseph's  farm  and  going 
to  work.  Here  came  in  my  first  trial  and  perplexity; 
Hoosier  farming  was  very  different  from  Carolina; 
the  climate,  soil,  season  and  way  of  cultivating  was  all 
different,  and  people  had  to  bestir  themselves  when 
spring  came;  there  was  no  winter  plowing;  after  the 
ground  thawed  out  and  settled,  the  plow  had  to  go 
every  hour  of  daylight  to  prepare  the  ground,  and  then 
to  cultivate  the  crop  till  harvest  came.  Then  every 
hour  was  necessary  to  secure  the  grain  and  grass;  '*ri 
many  places  the  stumj^s  were  so  thick  the  wheat  was 
still  cut  with  the  reap  hook,  and  hired  help  was  hard 
to  get,  so  nearly  all  were  cropping  in  the  summer 
time.  All  this  was  before  me  and  made  me  a  little 
nervous  as  to  how  I  might  succeed,  and  still  more  per- 
plexed as  to  what  people  would  say. 

On  the  25th  day  of  June,  Emily  Hadley  and  1 
were  married  at  Bl(X)mfield,  Parke  County,  India naj 


96  LIFE    AND    TRAVELS 

after  the  order  of  the  Society  of  Friends,  now  Friends 
Church.  Of  course  it  was  a  wonderful  event  in  our 
lives,  but  verv'  much  like  other  similar  events  before 
and  since.  We  saw  and  began  life  from  the  practical 
side;  next  day  after  the  marriage  I  did  a  good  day's 
plowing,  and  the  second  day  after  my  wife  walked 
over  with  me  to  Joseph  Hill's,  and  from  that  day  we 
were  one. 

I  fully  realized  my  situation,  and  was  keenly 
alive  and  sensitive  to  what  might  be  said.  My  wife 
had  elected  to  marry  a  poor  Carolina  boy  instead  of 
wealthy  suitors,  and  for  me  to  fail  was  more  than  T 
could  bear  to  think  of.  One  former  suitor  had  said  of 
her,  ''She  has  married  a  pcK)r  Carolinian,  and  will 
have  to  dance  in  the  hog  trrtugh  the  rest  of  her  days." 
T  said  to  her  when  I  heard  it  Iwould  make  a  living 
for  her,  or  shorten  my  days  at  hard  work. 

My  farming  was  a  success  that  year,  and  that 
winter  I  taught  school  again.  The  next  year  my 
farming  was  again  a  success,  but  I  wanted  a  home  of 
my  own,  but  I  was  not  able  to  buy  land  in  that  pari: 
of  the  country.  The  wonderful  Wabash  and  Lak.,' 
Erie  canal  was  being  built  from  Toledo  to  Evansville 
on  the  Ohio  River,  which,  when  completed,  would 
be  one  of  the  longest  in  the  world :  land  on  the  line  of 
its  construction  increased  in  value  very  fast.  Water 
navigation  was  the  idea  of  national  prosperity  at  that 


OF    ADDISON    COFFIN.  97 

time,  railroads  as  yet  being  in  tlie  background  and  in 
the  experimental  staire.  With  a  sad  heart  I  had  to 
turn  away  from  this  future  great  improvement  and 
home  market,  to  seek  a  home  where  land  was  cheap. 
It  was  40  miles  east  to  the  land  my  mother  had  en- 
tered in  1833,  and  it  was  considered  40  miles  from 
market.  She  gave  me  privilege  to  (x^cupy  and  culti- 
vate as  my  own,  but  that  would  not  be  mine;  but  Iwenr, 
to  see  it  and  found  an  80-acre  lot  alongside  for  sale  for 
$537.50;  this  I  bought  and  rented  the  cabin  and  a 
small  piece  of  land  on  it  for  the  season.  This  event 
seemed  to  give  us  new  energy  and  new  life ;  we  had 
something  to  work  for;  a  spot  of  earth  we  could  call 
ours;  a  home. 

On  January  27,  1847,  a  son  was  born  to  us,  and 
like  other  parents  we  thought  it  a  precious  gift  from 
the  Lord,  and  naturally  began  to  dream  of  its  future, 
but  alas!  on  the  12th  of  May  succeeding  it  was  taken 
from  us,  which  cast  a  cloud  over  our  lives,  and  made 
a  shadow  fall  over  our  prospective  home. 

On  the  2nd  day  of  February,  1848,  we  arrive4  on 
our  land*  after  two  days'  hard  travel  through  mud  and 
ice,  and  started  the  first  fire  at  home.  The  cabin 
was  20x22  feet,  with  regTilar  cabin  roof,  made  of 
boards  four  feet  long  and  held  in  place  by  heavy  poles ; 
the  fioor  was  rough  boards  fastened  down  with  wooden 
pins,  and  the  chimney  was  ''stick  and  clay''  with  a 


^^8  LIFE    AND    TRAVELS 

fire-place  six  feet  wide,  with  back  built  up  with  stones 
three  feet.  We  had  no  stove,  for  they  were  costly  at 
that  day ;  we  had  an  outfit  of  skillets,  ovens,  pots,  a  tin 
reflector,  and  a  long-handled  frying-pan,  etc.,  etc.,  and 
I  soon  rigged  up  a  wooden  crane  to  swing  the  pots 
over  the  fire,  for  the  boiling  vas  done  in  the  pots,  and 
the  baking  done  over  coals  on  the  hearth.  There  was 
room  for  two  beds  in  the  back  end ;  for  kitchen,  parlor 
and  bed-room  were  all  one;  the  table  w^as  made  of 
rough  boards,  the  result  of  my  own  skill ;  the  cupboard, 
of  same  material,  w^as  fastened  on  pins  driven  in  the 
wall.  There  was  but  one  door  and  no  window,  but 
another  door  and  a  small  window  was  soon  added;  and 
we  were  happy  and  thankful  for  all  our  surroundings. 
In  a  few  weeks  sugar-making  began ;  there  was  a 
fine  sugar  orchard  of  400  trees,  large  and  thrifty ;  this 
we  opened,  and  w^ere  busy  with  the  work  for  three 
weeks  w^hen  the  season  closed ;  we  made  an  abundance 
of  sugar  and  molasses  for  home  use  and  some  for  mar- 
ket. When  I  look  back  to  what  was  before  us  the 
spring  of  1848,  the  wonder  is  that  we  w^ere  not  dis- 
couraged and  filled  with  despair;  the  fields  that  were 
enclosed  were  thickly  set  with  dead  trees;  many  had 
fallen  during  the  winter;  plowing  could  not  begin  until 
much  hard  w^ork  was  done  in  rolling  and  burning  logs ; 
fences  needed  repairing,  and  worst  of  all  we  did  not 
have  money  to  hire  help,  but  we  were  young  and  hope- 


OF    ADDiSON    COFFIN.  99 

ful,  full  of  determination,  and  did  not  know  what  the 
future  might  bring.  We  worked  early  and  late, 
studied,  planned  and  prayed  for  patience,  strength  and 
health,  and  did  not  lose  a  day,  and  as  things  began  to 
put  on  a  home-like' look,  and  the  crops  grew  and  har- 
vest came  and  rewarded  our  efforts;  we  were  happy 
in  our  simple,  homely  home,  and  gladness  filled  our 
hearts. 

The  year  1849  was  unusually  dry  and  crops  were 
short,  and  we  were  rather  straitened  in  making  pay- 
ments, but  the  county  surveyor  took  sick  and  could 
not  work,  and  I  took  his  place  for  three  months,  for 
which  service  I  received  $44.00,  quite  an  item  in  our 
present  condition;  this  surveying  proved  an  advantage 
to  me  in  after  years.  It  was  a  time  of  violent  political 
agitation;  the  Abolitionists  were  becoming  a  fixed 
quantity  in  politics,  and  the  pro-slavery  elements  were 
hostile  and  abusive.  Most  of  my  surveying  was  laying 
out  and  locating  public  roads  in  which  all  had  an  in- 
terest, thus  I  was  brought  in  contact  with  all  classes, 
and  I  never  failed  to  defend  abolitionism;  and  never 
did  my  knowledge  of  the  Bible  and  history  stand  me 
more  in  hand,  and  I  could  out  talk  any  opposition,  and 
make  the  old  pioneers  believe  I  was  very  wise  and 
learned,  beside  my  knowledge  of  surveying  was  a  sur- 
prise to  them.  Many  times  I  would  amuse  a  large 
company  of  them  by  marking  on  the  ground,  showing 


100  LIFE    AND    TRAVELS 

how  to  measure  by  triangulation  both  in  height  and 
distance,  and  more  than  one  boy  caught  the  inspiration 
to  become  a  surveyor,  and  in  time  succeeded.  This 
contact  with  pro-slavery  class  had  the  effect  to  lessen 
their  violence  toward  me  and  my  cause.  I  shourld 
have  stated  that  in  September,  1848,  another  son,  who 
still  lives,  was  born  to  us,  which,  in  part,  filled  the 
blank  that  was  caused  by  the  death  of  our  first-born. 

It  may  not  be  out  of  place  to  relate  a  very  amus- 
ing event  that  (x^curred  in  my  surveying  days,  which 
^ives  an  insight  into  those  pioneer  times.  In  the 
north  corner  of  the  county  (Hendricks)  there  was  a 
new  section  being  settled,  and  a  road  was  wanted 
through  that  part.  There  was  a  sturdy,  old  Ken- 
tuckian  who  was  clearing  a  field  in  the  dense  fore.-:i, 
and  had  killed  many  large  rattle-snakes,  which  were 
dangerously  abundant;  he  had  killed  a  very  large  one 
with  sixteen  rattles  and  a  button;  it  being  unusually 
large  he  did  not  burn  it  as  was  his  wont,  but  left  it 
lying  where  killed.  A  dandy  lawyer,  an  old  a'> 
quaintance,  from  Kentucky,  had  come  on  a  visit  to  the 
"backwoods"  and  came  out  where  the  snake  lay,  he 
was  riding  a  fine  horse,  and  was  equipped  with  kid 
gloves,  spurs  and  riding  whip.  Seeing  the  rattles  on 
the  dead  snake  (its  head  was  cut  off),  he  alighted,  drev/ 
off  one  of  his  gloves  and  with  a  stylish  pocket  knife 
proceeded  to  cut  off  the  rattles ;  he  squatted  down,  toolc 


OF    ADDISON    COFFIN.  101 

the  rattles  in  his  gloved  fingers,  then  applied  the  knife ; 
as  soon  as  the  knife  entered  the  flesh,  the  snake  strnck 
back  as  if  to  bite  and  hit  the  dandy  on  his  naked  hand 
with  unerring  precision  with  the  bloody  stub  of  its 
neck,  then  writhed  convulsively  at  the  man's  feet.  He 
wdth  one  mid  shriek  bounded  into  the  air,  then  fell 
backward  in  a  dead  swoon.  He  had  to  be  carried  to 
the  cabin,  and  it  was  some  hours  before  he  regained 
consciousness,  and  three  weeks  before  he  was  able  to 
start  home;,  and  a  year  before  he  fully  recovered  from 
the  shock.  He  never  returned  to  Indiana;  he  had  no 
use  for  a  country  where  snakes  with  heads  cut  off 
could  still  bite.  Those  large  rattle-snakes  are  very  ten- 
acious of  life,  like  the  snapping  turtle,  and  ^vill  writhe 
and  strike  for  several  hours  after  apparently  killed. 
The  old  pioneer  above  knew  Avhat  the  Kentucky  dandv 
would  get,  but  had  not  counted  on  the  effect;  his  good 
wife  said  she  did  not  want  any  more  such  fun. 

In  1849,  my  brother,  Emory,  who  had  married 
a  neighbor  girl,  Elmira  H.  Foster,  moved  to  Indiana 
and  settled  at  Dunreith,  which  place  he  started  when 
the  railroad  was  constructed.  They  came  to  see  us 
soon  after,  and  thought  it  was  rather  a  heavy  under- 
taking to  make  a  living  among  the  big  trees,  stumps 
and  brush;  beside  we  were  a  half-way  place  between 
Whitlick,  in  Morgan  County,  and  Bloomfield,  in  Parke 
County,  and  did  more  in  feeding  others  than  for  our- 

7 


102  LIFE    AND    TRAVELS 

selves.  Many  times  we  would  cover  our  cabin  floor 
with  beds  for  our  friends  to  sleep,  and  if  cold  weather, 
keep  them  and  the  house  warm  with  a  big  log  fire  that 
would  burn  all  night.  This  was  pioneer  style,  and 
was  quite  enjoyable,  though  rather  hard  on  beginner^, 
and  brother  and  wife  protested  against  it;  saying  we 
were  doing  more  than  our  share,  even  though  we  did 
it  freely,  and  much  of  it  was  to  traveling  Friends. 

With  all  our  hard  work  and  discouragement,  the 
Lord  seemed  to  bless  our  efforts,  and  in  1850,  we  fiii- 
islied  paying  for  our  home,  and  built  a  good  log  l>arn. 
In  spite  of  the  violent  pro-slavery  spirit  without,  anrl 
the  negative  opposition  within  the  church,  we  held 
our  own  by  persistent  agitation  and  discussion  of  the 
alwlition  subject. 

But  alas!  we  knew  not  v/hat  was  in  store  for  r.s. 
On  the  2Cth  of  December,  1850,  a  third  son  was  born, 
and  in  21  hours  Emily  showed  signs  of  fever,  which 
increased  in  spite  of  medical  skill,  until  the  2nd  of 
January,  1851,  she  passed  away. 

The  shock  and  feeling  of  utter  desolation  that 
overwhelmed  me  was  such  that  it  never  wholly  left 
me;  it  seemed  more  than  I  w^as  able  to  bear.  Father 
and  mother  Hadley  arrived  a  few  hours  after  she  died. 
Though  she  was  fully  resigned,  and  felt  the  glad  as- 
surance that  she  would  receive  the  answer  to  her  pray- 
ers "Well  done,  good  and  faithful  serv^ant,  enter  into 


OF    ADDISON    COFFIN.  103 

the  joy  of  thy  Lord,"  yet  she  had  a  strong  desire  to  see 
her  mother  before  departing.  When  this  was  told  her 
mother  it  so  touched  her,  that  she  never  got  over  her 
heart  yearning  to  have  heard  her  dying  words. 

Father  and  Mother  Hadley  kindly  offered  me  a 
home  with  them  in  my  helplessness,  so  I  rented  my  corn 
ground  for  the  season,  and  as  soon  as  we  could  arranga 
things  returned  to  their  home.  During  the  summer 
I  made  frequent  trips  to  and  from  my  home,  for  I 
had  a  large  wheat  crop,  for  that  time,  and  this  I  har- 
vested and  threshed.  In  the  hot  weather  I  preferred 
traveling  after  night,  and  walked  the  distance  twice 
(40  miles)  by  moonlight,  and  enjoyed  the  solitude,  as 
I  passed  the  silent  homes  by  the  way;  but  the  longing 
for  my  home  became  so  strong,  that  in  the  fall  I  de- 
termined to  return  to  JS^orth  Carolina  for  my  mother 
to  come  and  live  with  me.'  Some  time  in  the  begin- 
ning of  October,  I  started,  going  by  rail  from  Amo  to 
Madison  on  the  Ohio  river,  then  by  steamer  to  Ouy- 
andot,  Va. ;  I  then  walked  to  Oharlestown,  and  took 
the  stage  over  the  mountains  which  was  covered  with 
snow,  then  on  foot  again  to  the  old  home  in  New  Gar- 
den, where  all  were  taken  by  surprise,  as  I  had  not 
notified  them  of  my  intent. 

My  mother  at  first  declined  to  come  away  from  the 
grave  of  my  father,  for  she  wanted  to  be  buried  by 
him;  but  she  kindly  consented  on  my  pi-omising  to 


104  LIFE    AND    TRAVELS 

take  her  back  for  burial  when  she  died.  When  this 
promise  was  made  a  A^oice  in  my  heart  said  I  would 
live  to  do  it.  I  remained  through  the  winter,  and 
made  arrangements  for  the  return;  in  the  meantime 
my  two  nieces,  Mary  E.  and  Miriam  A.  Henly  wanted 
to  come  with  their  grandmother,  also  two  cousins, 
Esther  J.  and  Phineas  Coffin,  and  a  half  grown  negro 
boy;  this  was  loading  u:i  rather  heavily,  but  I  bought 
two  old,  cheap,  blind  horses  and  a  light  wagon,  and 
about  the  first  of  April,  1852,  started  on  another  over- 
land trip  to  Indiana. 

We  presented  a  novel  sight;  our  team  was  not 
very  showy,  the  wagon  was  full  of  provisions,  trunks, 
bales  and  bundles;  the  young  folks  were  full  of  life 
and  fun,  they  had  never  been  far  from  home,  and  had 
not  seen  mountains,  or  large  rivers,  consequently, 
were  full  of  wonder  and  delight.  All  walked  except 
mother,  and  even  she  did  quite  often.  I  walked  be- 
side the  horses  all  the  time.  Around  the  camp  fire 
at  night  there  was  life,  fun,  and  story  telling.  The 
tent  was  set  with  open  end  to  the  fire,  mother  and  the 
girls  slept  in  it,  while  Sam,  the  negro  boy,  rolled  in 
his  blanket,  lay  across  the  opening  at  their  feet  as 
watchman.  Phineas  and  I  slept  in  th^e  wagon,  and  1 
kept  the  horses  eating  all  night  when  they  wished 
more  food.  Though  things  all  moved  on  like  clock- 
work, it  was  rather  an  anxious  time  with  mother,  for 


OF    ADDISON    COFFIN.  105 

had  anytliing  befallen  me,  my  company  would  have 
been  in  rather  bad  shape  among  the  mountains. 

Many  times  the  fording  of  rivers,  and  large 
creeks  was  amusing  and  full  of  excitement,  there  was 
not  room  for  all  in  the  wagon,  so  mother,  one  girl,  and 
Sam  would  go  first  in  the  wagon,  then  Sam  would  un- 
hitch the  horses,  and  bring  them  back,  then  the  rest 
would  go,  two  on  a  horse;  this  was  the  amusing  part; 
the  horses  being  blind,  would  stumble  and  flounder 
about,  if  not  guided  well,  and  there  would  be  shoutine; 
and  boisterous  meiTiment,  but  all  finally  crossed  over 
dry. 

When  we  arrived  at  Maiden,  twelve  miles  abovo 
Ckarlestown,  on  the  Kanawha  river,  we  took  steamer, 
and  landed  at  Madison,  Indiana.  Thence  we  made 
for  my,  home,  arriving  there  about  the  5th  of  May, 
sound  and  well,  the  two  old  horses  the  better  for  their 
feeding.  It  was  a  surprise  to  all  that  we  had  made 
the  trip  without  mishap  or  loss. 

Phineas  Coflin  went  to  a  cousin  fifteen  miles 
away,  and  learned  to  be  a  locomotive  engineer,  with 
Sam  for  fireman.  Poor  Sam  was  killed  in  a  wreck, 
Phineas  quit  the  business,  and  finally  fell  at  the  Battle 
of  Stone  River  while  fighting  in  the  Union  army. 
Esther  J.  Coffin  married  Dr.  W.  F.  Harvey,  and  is 
still  li\dng.  Mary  E.  Henly  married  and  settled  in 
Grant  County,  Ind.,  and  is  still  living,.     Miriam  A^ 


106  LIFE    AND    TRAVELS 

Henlj  married  and  is  now  living  in  Denver,  Colorado. 
All  have  grandchildren  to  whom  is  told  the  stoiy  of 
the  wonderful  trip  from  North  Carolina. 

A  week  was  spent  in  planting  a  garden,  and  in 
making  other  aTrajigements  for  beginning  again,  then 
I  went  to  father  Hadley's  and  brought  my  children, 
and  the  new  home  life  moved  on  with  the  routine  of 
labor  and  care.  I  now  had  quite  a  family  to  look  af- 
ter, and  my  mother  often  said  that  surely  there  must 
be  something  in  the  old  Albanoid  superstition,  or  sign, 
at  my  birth,  that  I  was  to  "Overcome-Triumph"  or  I 
could  not  so  cheerfully  take  such  responsibilities,  as 
the  looking  after  so  dependent  a  company  as  we  were 
then;  but  we  worked  on,  mother  was  the  central  regu- 
lator, the  girls  went  out  with  me  into  all  kinds  of  work 
to  which  their  strength  was  adapted.  I  had  several 
young  horses  with  which  they  amused  themselves,  in 
training  them  to  be  ridden,  and  they  soon  learned  to 
drive  a  team,  and  took  great  delight  in  it.  This  saved 
me  much  time,  and  more  was  done  during  that  season 
than  if  there  had  been  a  hired  man.  The  spring  of 
1853  was  a  good  sugar  year;  the  girls  entered  into  the 
spirit  of  the  work,  and  we  did  a  goo<^l  thing  in  the  busi- 
ness; besides  the  abundant  family  supply,  sold  over  i 
barrel  of  molasses  at  one  dollar  per  gallon. 

But  there  was  a  dark  day  ahead  for  us  that  came 
net  with  crushing  but  heavy  weight.     My  brother. 


OF   ADDISON   COFFIN.  107 

Alfred,  had  expected  to  move  to  Indiana  in  the  near 
future,  but  suddenly  had  to  flee  for  his  life  from  the 
slave  power.  A  companion  of  his  early  youth,  a  play- 
mate of  his  boyhood  days,  betrayed  him  as  to  the  Un- 
derground Railroad  business,  and  nothing  but  his  cool 
courage  saved  his  life — with  the  loss  of  all  his  prop- 
erty, he  reached  my  home  with  his  wife  and  two  little 
children — cast  down,  overwhelmed,  but  not  crushed 
nor  wholly  discouraged.  Few  can  imagine  our  feel- 
ings when  we  all  met  around  the  table  the  first  time 
after  their  arrival.  The  question  came  to  our  hearts 
as  a  dark  temptation.  Had  the  Lord  forsaken  us? 
Had  we  been  following  a  false  guide  all  these  years? 
Had  we  been  risking  life,  limb,  honor,  yea,  and  our 
very  souls  for  an  empty  ideality  ?  Mother  arose  above 
it  all  and  assured  us  that  it  was  nothing  but  a  passing 
cloud,  and  there  would  be  sunshine  beyond,  yet  we  had 
still  deeper  proving.  In  a  short  time  brother's  wife, 
Mary  Elizabeth,  took  sick,  then  their  two  little  chil- 
dren, with  a  dangerous  flux  that  was  in  the  country, 
then  my  two  children  were  taken,  and  we  had  five- 
bad  cases  of  sickness  in  a  small  house.  It  was  but  a 
few  days  until  my  youngest  child  died,  and 
the  others  seemed  sinking  rapidly.  Brother's 
wife  also  grew  worse  and  it,  indeed,  seemed 
like  we  were  having  more  than  we  could  bear; 
when  we  were  alreadv  at  the  point  of  breaking  down. 


108  LIFE    AND    TRAVELS 

with  overwork,  anxiety  and  sorrow.  Suddenly  all 
began  to  slowly  recover,  and  in  a  few  weeks  we  sat  in 
our  little  house  with  glad  hearts  and  returning 
strength  and  courage.  We  now  made  common  cause 
and  resolved  to  live;  there  were  several  acres  of  dead 
ened  timber  ready  to  clear  up,  that  would  yield  boun- 
tiful crops;  after  harvest  was  over  we  went  into  the 
deadening,  and  by  taking  advantage  of  dry  weather, 
and  steady  hard  work,  soon  surj)rised  ourselves  with 
what  we  did.  Many  times  for  a  week  we  would  work 
till  10  P.  M.,  and  then  be  out  by  daylight,  for  all  the 
feeding  was  done  after  night  and  before  day.  The 
hai-d  work  that  claimed  our  attention  was  not  all  at 
home,  for  the  political  elements  were  stormy  around 
us.  The  old  Whig  party  had  been  defeated  and  killed 
for  all  time  at  the  presidential  election  of  1852,  and 
the  Freesoil  Wilmot  proviso  movement  was  every- 
where growing  rapidly;  the  haughty,  insolent  boast 
of  the  slave  power,  that  they  would  carry  slavery  into 
all  the  territories  was  arousing  the  freemen  of  the 
north,  and  the  "irrepressible  conflict"  was  approach- 
ing a  crisis.  Brother  and  I  were  not  silent  listeners 
and  lookers  on,  but  were  active,  earnest  workei*s,  and 
were  expected  to  lead  in  the  new  awakening  public 
opinion.  So  with  hard  work  and  stirring  political 
surroundings,  there  was  little  idle  time  in  the  house- 
hold. 


OF    ADDISON    COFFIN.  109 

I  had  beg-uii  building  a  new  house,  and  brother 
and  I  did  mucli  of  the  work  by  candle  light,  dressing 
and  matching  plank,  making  doors  and  windows,  lay- 
ing floor,  lathing,  etc.,  often  working  to  a  late  hour; 
this  we  did  while  keeping  the  crop  and  field  work  go- 
ing. It  seemed  absolutely  necessary  for  us  to  be  at 
the  top  of  our  speed  all  the  time  to  keep  from  brooding- 
over  brother's  wrong,  as  well  as  to  start  him  up  again 
in  independent  support. 

When  the  new  house  was  finished,  it  was  thought 
best  in  mother's  judgment  that  we  should  separate 
and  make  two  families.  Brother  remained  in  the 
cabin,  mother,  I  and  the  children  went  into  the  new 
house,  but  work  did  not  cease,  though  in  two  fami- 
lies we  were  still  one  in  purpose. 

To  keep  up  the  record  of  events,  it  will  be  in  or- 
der to  say  that  on  the  13th  of  May,  1854,  Ruth  Hadley 
and  I  were  married  according  to  the  order  of  Friends^ 
Church  at  Millcreek,  Hendricks  County,  Ind.  She- 
was  cousin  to  father-in-law,  Alfred  Hadley,  daugh- 
ter of  Joshua  and  Rebecca  Hadley. 

There  had  been  a  friendship  between  the  two 
families  since  1836,  especially  between  her  brother, 
Job,  and  me,  who  with  his  wife,  Tracy  Hadley,  were 
among  the  first  to  come  to  my  help  when  my  wife  died. 
Ruth  Hadley  was  a  school  teacher  of  nine  years'  ex- 
perience, and  was  nOt  afraid  to  marry  an  abolitionist. 


110  LIFE    AND    TRAVELS 

This  j^ear,  1854,  was  one  of  the  years  that  marked 
the  beginning  of  a  great  revolntion,  that  has  changed 
the  moral  sentiment  of  the  whole  civilized  world. 

It  will  be  remembered  that  on  the  22nd  da}'  of 
January,  1852,  Salmon  P.  Chase,  Charles  Sumner, 
senators;  and  Joshua  E.  Giddings,  Edward  Wade, 
Gerrit  Smith  and  Alexander  DeWitt,  representatives 
in  congTess,  issued  an  appeal  to  the  people  of  the 
United  States,  warning  them  of  the  intention  of  the 
slave  power  to  repeal  the  Missouri  compromise,  and 
the  extension  of  slavery  into  all  the  territories.  Then 
began  the  '^'Irrepressible  Conflict"  in  renewed  intens- 
ity with  dark  threatenings  and  vindictive  insolence  on 
the  part  of  the  slave  power. 

The  Missouri  compromise  was  repealed  in  1851. 
On  the  20th  of  June  all  the  above  named  men  to- 
gether with  all  the  anti-slavery  men  in  congress  met 
in  Washington,  and  sent  forth  another  appeal  to  the 
people  of  the  United  States.  The  appeal  was  signed 
by  Solomon  Foot,  as  chairman,  and  David  Mace  and 
Reuben  E.  Fenton  as  secretaries.  All  parties  op 
posed  to  slavery  regardless  of  party  names  and  partv 
preferences  were  called  on  to  unite  against  the  com- 
mon enemy.  This  appeal  ran  like  lightning  through 
all  the  northern  states  and  territories,  and  the  whole 
land  was  in  a  ferment  of  excitement,  indignation  anr! 
stern  resolve;  the  sound  of  the  fiT-st  gun  in  the  civil  war 


OF    ADDISON    COFFIN.  Ill 

did  not  produce  half  the  excitement.  At  last  the  peo- 
ple were  fully  aroused  to  their  danger,  and  the  per- 
fidy of  the  slave  power. 

The  lirst  response  to  this  appeal  came  from  Mich- 
igan. The  abolitionists  of  that  state  met  on  the  6th 
of  July  at  Jackson  to  discuss  the  situation.  The  sub- 
ject of  forming  a  National  pai-ty  with  a  platform  on 
which  all  people  opposed  to  slavery  could  unite,  was 
discussed  at  length  and  finally  adopted;  then  the  name 
of  the  party  was  discussed.  ''Free  Soil,"  "Free  Dem- 
ocrat," "Freemen's  Partv,"  ''Anti-slavery,"  and  some 
others  were  proposed,  but  during  the  discussion  John 
P.  Hale  sent  a  dispatch  suggesting  the  name  "Repub- 
lican," which  was  adopted  unanimously,  and  then  and 
there  the  great  political  revolution  began.  The 
watch-word  was  free  speech,  free  soil,  free  labor,  and 
free  men,  and  the  motto.  "A  union  with  all  men  for 
the  sake  of  liberty."  The  platform  adopted  was  the 
same  as  that  of  the  freesoilers  during  the  AVilmot  pro- 
viso conflict,  that  resulted  in  the  compromise  of  1850, 
wnth  the  new  issue  of  the  repeal  of  the  Missouri 
compromise  and  the  extension  of  slavery. 

In  five  days  the  whole  state  of  Michigan  was 
ablaze  with  political  excitement  and  never  abated  un- 
til the  last  gun  of  the  rebellion  was  fired.  Indiana 
was  next  in  line.  On  July  13th  a  mass  meeting  was 
held  at  Indianapolis,  at  which  the  name  "Republi- 


112  LIFE    AND    TRAVELS 

can''  was  adopted  bv  acclamation,  and  the  Michigan 
platform  was  adopted  with  a  few  local  additions,  and 
Indiana  was  ablaze  with  excitement.  The  pro-slaver}' 
Whigs  joined  the  Democrats.  The  anti-slavery  Dem- 
ocrats joined  the  Republicans,  and  the  w^hole  political 
elements  were  in  violent  motion,  and  in  some  locali- 
ties there  was  danger  of  an  outbreak.  The  abolition- 
ists who  had  suffered  insult,  abuse,  mob  violence, 
brickbats  and  rotten  eggs,  were  ready  to  retaliate  with 
interest;  but  evei-y where  wiser  counsel  prevailed.  In 
a  few  weeks  eleven  northern  states  had  come  into  line, 
and  the  revolution  was  complete  and  gave  its  last  tri- 
umphant shout  of  victory  at  the  fall  of  the  rebellion 
at  Appomattox  in  1865. 

There  is  a  disgusting  as  well  as  an  amusing  phase 
of  humanity  in  recalling  the  stirring  time  from  181:8 
to  1865.  Men  who  from  1844  to  1860  could  not 
think  of  words  vile  and  profane  enough  to  express 
their  opinions  of  abolitionists,  when  the  Republican 
party  became  popular,  suppressed  the  rebellion,  freed 
the  slaves,  reconstructed  the  south,  etc.,  began  to  use 
the  term  'Sve"  in  all  their  jjolitical  talk.  "We"  formed 
the  Republican  party,  "we''  suppressed  the  rebellion. 
"We"  did  thus  and  so  and  all  such  talk,  but  in  many 
cases  my  memory  retained  many  of  their  old  time  vilo 
expressions,  and  even  up  to  date  I  am  cruel  enough  to 
make  them  turn  red  in  the  face  with  confusion  and 


OF    ADDISON    COFFIN.  113 

shame  by  calling  to  mind  what 'Sve"  did  do  and  say;  nor 
were  such  characters  confined  to  these  old  pro-slavery 
days,  the  land  is  full  of  them  to-day,  and  "we"  are  still 
among  the  leading  drones  and  dead  weights  in  the 
community.  Alack !  for  humanity  with  all  its  frailty. 
This  same  Eepublican  party  that  1  helped  form  and 
support,  which  has  done  so  much  good,  has  degen- 
erated into  a  saloon,  whiskey  party,  like  the  Whigs 
pandered  to  slavery. 

At  this  time  central  Indiana  had  advanced  won- 
derfully in  improvements,  farms  were  opened,  the 
dead  trees  and  stumps  were  gone;  nice,  comfortable 
homes  were  built  and  as  a  greater  sign  of  success  and 
permanent  gain,  a  multitude  of  large  barns  were  being 
built  every  season;  sometimes  fifty  men  and  boys 
would  be  at  a  barn  raising,  and  there  was  no  better 
place  to  learn  the  political  opinions  of  the  people; 
often  two  men  would  begin  discussing  the  situation 
and  someone  would  cry  out  "hold  up,"  meaning  stop 
work;  "let's  have  a  five  minutes'  speech,"  and  all  hands 
would  listen  to  the  talk  for  ten,  fifteen,  or  twenty 
minutes,  then  the  work  would  go  on  again,  and  it  was 
surprising  how  much  reading  and  thinking  were  done 
among  the  great  mass  of  pioneers.  The  young  people 
discussed  the  slavery  subject  at  their  literary  and  de- 
bating associations.  Neighbors  would  meet  neighbor 
on  the  way  and  exchange  opinions,  not  so  mu^*h  in 


114  LIFE    AND    TRAVELS 

angiy  partisan  discussion,  but  in  earnest  anxiety  to 
know  what  to  do  under  the  surrounding  condition?. 
The  little  dry  weather-beaten  mail  sacks  carried  by  the 
postman  across  the  country  had  to  be  oiled  up  and  be- 
gan to  look  like  wool  sacks  with  the  increase  of  mail 
matter.  Men  in  some  cases  read  more  in  one  year 
than  they  had  read  in  half  a  life-time  before,  and  no 
one  w^as  astonished  at  the  vote  given  for  Freemont,  the 
first  Republican  candidate  for  president  in  1856. 

Amid  all  this  intense  excitement  I  could  not  be 
idle;  home  life  had  its  necessities  that  called  for  un 
remitting  exertion,  and  in  the  new  political  activity  I 
was  naturally  thrown  forward  to  do  nmch  of  the  hard 
work  in  talking  at  all  the  local  contests.  Everywhere 
and  at  all  times  I  had  caiise  to  be  thankful  that  I  had 
read  the  Bil  le  through  when  a  boy,-  and  then  had  fol- 
lowed uj)  by  reading  history  connected  with  Bible 
events;  this  gave  me  an  advantage  over  men  far  su- 
perior in  education  and  natural  ability.  I  had  a  small 
pocket  Bible  that  became  a  terror  to  local  politicians^, 
and  many  a  by-stander  would  go  home  and  for  the  first 
time  set  himself  to  reading  the  Bible,  after  listening 
to  a  Bible  argument  against  slavery. 

So  time  went  on  with  no  relaxation  from  labor, 
or  abatement  of  political  excitement.  The  campaio^n 
of  1856,  with,  all  its  hurras  and  mass  meetings,  swear- 
ing,  drinking,   betting  and   monomania,   the  distort- 


OF    ADDISON    COFFIN.  115 

ed  and  exaggerated  rumors  of  what  the  slave  power 
was  conspiring  to  do,  kept  things  at  white  heat;  the 
result  of  the  presidential  election  of  1856  seemed  to 
give  assurance  of  victory  in  1860,  which  added  to  the 
intensity  of  expectancy  in  coming  events. 

On  June  l'3th,  1856,  a  son  was  bom  to  us,  whom 
we  named  Job,  after  Job  Hadley,  and  my  favorit ; 
Uncle,  Job  (tiffin.  P]mily''s  children  were  U'anKuI 
Vestal,  Trenmor  and  Miltoji.  Vestal  and  Milton 
died.  Trenmor  now  lives  at  Carson  City,  Nevada, 
an  attorney-at-law  and  banker  and  is  doing  well. 

During  the  time  between  1856  and  1860,  there 
was  great  unrest  in  every  part  of  social,  political,  re- 
ligious and  domestic  life.  Xew  thoughts  seemed  to 
suddenly  come  into  the  minds  of  every  one.  The  agi- 
tation of  the  slavery  question  had  opened  out  new 
channels  of  thought,  and  new  powers  of  thinking,  the 
invention  of  labor-saving  machinery  was  also  trans- 
forming every  department  of  productive  industry, 
and  especially  home  life.  The  spinning  and  weaving 
of  home-made  cloth  went  out  of  use  and  the  sewing 
machine  came  in.  The  mowing  and  reaping  machine 
lessened  by  one-half  the  farm  labor,  the  housewife  wa5. 
released  from  half  her  toil,  the  men  and  boys  rloing 
much  that  she  and  the  girls  formerly  did.  The 
farmer  with  the  same  labor  doubled  his  yearly  prod- 
ucts, and  all  had  time  to  think;  and  the  thinking  was 


116  LIFE    AND    TRAVELS 

forming  into  questions.  Why  are  all  things  as  we 
find  them?  Is  there  not  a  better  way?  Hov,-  much 
of  our  faith  and  belief  is  traditional,  and  not  founded 
on  principles  of  justice  and  judgment?  In  the 
churches  the  question  was  being  asked,  How  much  i? 
the  tradition  of  the  elders,  and  how  much  is  from  the 
Bible  in  our  religion,  belief  and  usage  ?  Everywhere, 
in  every  channel  of  thought,  active  minds  were  ex- 
ploring the  surroundings.  Especially  was  woman- 
hood beginning  to  ask  the  question:  ^'Why  such  a  dif- 
ference between  man  and  wife,  between  son  and 
daughter  before  the  civil  law  ?  Why  is  woman  looked 
upon  as  inferior  in  all  church  matters  ?  Why  pay  ^\  o- 
men  less  wages  than  men  for  the  same  amouni  of 
work?" 

In  the  midst  of  all  this  cA^olution  and  revolution, 
I  was  still  working  on  the  farm  up  to  the  limit  of  my 
strength,  and  was  slowly  gaining  headway ;  every  year 
more  land  was  cleared,  the  timber  land  sowed  in  grass 
adding  to  the  pasture  land.  One  favorite  business 
was  raising  horses,  and  in  time  I  had  several  young 
horses  for  sale  each  spring,  and  made  more  money  at 
the  business  than  any  other.  Connected  with  this 
horse  business  was  a  very  amusing  pastime,  especialh 
for  the  neighbor  boys,  that  of  trainingcolts  to  be  ridden, 
and  gaited  for  travel.  Being  an  expert  imm  youth  in 
this  art,  it  was  mv  custom  to  set  an  afternoon  and  in- 


OF    ADDISON    COFFIN.  117 

vite  the  boys  to  join  in  the  exciting  scene;  and  it  can 
be  said  that  we  never  failed  in  mastering  by  stratagem 
the  wildest  colts  known.  My  plan  was  the  more  dan- 
gerous, but  most  sure;  I  always  rode  the  wild  colts  with- 
out bridle,  or  halter,  and  had  an  enclosure  from  which 
they  could  not  escape,  by  power  of  endurance,  and 
agility  let  them  completely  exhaust  themselves  in  try- 
ing to  escape,  or  shake  me  off,  and  in  time  the  boys 
caught  the  knack,  and  the  result  was  that  my  colts  always 
sold  at  a  good  price.  In  fifteen  years  I  had  sold  a  colt 
to  every  boy  for  miles  around  for  when  they  wanted 
a  horse  to  make  a  beginning,  for  as  yet  buggy  and 
pleasure  carriages  were  not  in  use,  all  people  trav- 
eled on  hoi-seback  when  going  to  church  and  on  gala 
days  and  on  journeys,  traveling  horses  were  in  demand 
and  sure  sale. 

Again  a  cloud  fell  on  the  household.  On  June 
27 th,  1858,  our  little  son.  Job,  passed  away  aged  two 
years.  This  was  peculiarly  trying  to  my  wife,  being- 
her  first  born,  and  a  child  of  unusual  promise,  and  we 
had  begun  to  hope  for  a  life  of  usefulness.  My  son 
Trenmor  had  become  strongly  attached  to  his  little 
brother,  and  talked  much  of  what  they  would  do  when 
they  were  men.  The  loss  of  this  brother  had  a 
marked  effect  upon  his  young  mind,  which  he  did  nor 
forget,  and  it  seemed  to  prove  one  of  the  way  mark 
of  his  life, 


118  LIFE    AND    TRAVELS 

My  brother  had  resumed  the  practice  of  medi- 
cine, and  was  making  a  success  in  business,  was  brave 
and  strong  again,  and  entered  into  all  the  excitement 
of  everything  pertaining  to  the  slave  power.  Brother 
Emory  had  settled  into  successful  business  at  Dun- 
reith,  Ind.,  and  was  more  quiet  and  mild  in  all  his 
w^ays.  We  had  also  taJ^en  a  little  niece  into  our  fam- 
ily, who  became  as  our  own  child,  Euth  Woodward, 
daughter  of  my  wife's  sister,  Susannah  Smith,  who  was 
married  the  second  time  to  William  Smith. 

In  1857,  Western  Yearly  Meeting  of  Friends 
Church. was  established  at  Plainfield,  twelve  miles 
from  my  home.  It  was  set  off  from  Indiana  Yearly 
Meeting  held  at  Richmond,  Ind.,  and  was  a  very  large 
meeting  from  the  beg-inning.  Father  Alfred  Had- 
ley  was  one  of  the  committee  in  charge  of  the  locating 
and  building  a  meeting  house,  and  he  always  stopped 
with  us  going  and  coming  from  Plainfield,  while  the 
house  was  being  built;  a  neighbor,  Dr.  James  Kersey, 
was  also  one  of  the  building  committee,  so  I  was  toler- 
ably well  informed  of  what  was  the  mind  of  the  active 
leaders  of  that  day  in  the  church,  or  ''The  Religious 
Society  of  Friends"  as  then  called,  and  the  name  un- 
der which  the  Yearly  Meeting  was  incorporated. 

At  that  time  the  standard  of  wealthwaslow,whf*n 
comy)ared  with  the  present  standard;  millionaires  were 
almost   unknown.      A  man  worth  $100,000  was  the 


OF    ADDISON    COFFIN.  119 

highest  standard  of  weahh;  so  the  })ropositic)n  to  build 
a  $12,000  meeting  house  seemed  wonderful,  and  was 
discussed  long  and  earnestly  before  it  was  approved; 
then  it  became  a  point  of  honor,  and  a  spirit  of  enthus- 
iasm took  possession  of  the  members  to  build  the 
grand,  costly  church. 

I  entered  warmly  into  the  building  spirit,  and 
imagined,  in  advance,  how  nice  it  w^ould  be  to  sit  in 
the  congregation^,  in  so  grand  a  house,  yet  not  once 
dreaming  what  w^ould  be.  my  relation  to  that  congre- 
gation in  a  few  brief  years.  The  first  Yearly  Meet- 
ing held  was  a  sensational  event  in  the  community, 
and, was  the  largest  religious  meeting  ever  held  in  cen- 
tral Indiana;  on  the  first  Sabbath  of  its  sessions  there 
were  10,000  or  more  people  in  attendance,  and  up  to 
the  present  time  Quaker  Yearly  Meeting  is  a  fixed 
thing  in  the  calendar,  and  used  as  a  mark  of  current 
events  as  occurring  before  or  after,  and  year  by  year 
its  influence  for  good  has  slowly  become  a  power  of  no 
small  moral  and  political  interest.  Its  decisions  on 
temperance,  peace,  social,  educational,  and  economi- 
<'al  questions  has  a  deciding  influence  far  and  near. 

The  establishing  of  Western  Yearly  Meeting,  and 
the  constantly  intensifying  agitation  of  the  slavery 
subject,  made  the  life  current  run  at  almost  fever 
heat,  the  national  awakening  was  something  I  had  de- 
spaired of  seeing,  but  the  hope  that  slavery  could  be 


120  LIFE    AND    TRAVELS 

checked,  then  restrained  and  finally  abolished  in  my 
day  was  so  exciting  to  my  excitable  hopes  that  it  is  a 
wonder  I  was  capable  of  carrying  on  my  regular  busi- 
ness. But  for  my  wife's  superior  judgment  and  busi- 
ness ability  I  would  have  failed ;  but  I  was  in  the  prime 
of  life  and  my  early  training  had  prepared  me  to  meet 
what  it  seemed  the  Lord  intended  T  should  pas4 
through;  nor  did  I  have  time  to  think  of  what  migbt 
come,  the  present  was  so  full  of  work  that  it  required 
undivided  attention.  At  this  period  events  crowded 
upon  me  so  fast  that  they  will  have  to  lye  taken  sep-, 
iirately  though  contemporary. 

In  the  early  spring  of  1860  T  met  my  intimate- 
friend,  Dr.  Mark  D.  Stoneman,  who  was  intensely 
alive  to  all  the  surroundings,  and  a  foreseer  of  coming 
events.  Among  his  first  exclamations  was  th'ri,  "We 
are  riglit  at  the  beginning  of  a  furious  civil  war,  I 
feel  it  in  every  bone  and  fiber  of  body,  heart  and  mind. 
Let  it  come,  I  am  ready,  this  generation  will  see  the 
end  of  slavery,  thank  God."  Of  course  his  enthus- 
iasm awakened  a  sympathetic  cord  in  my  heart,  and 
we  prophesied  until  our  reason  called  a  halt,  and  we 
came  to  more  sol>er  things. 

The  wonderful  presidential  campaign  of  I860 
has  gone  into  history  as  one  of  the  most  intensely  vio- 
lent of  all  our  history,  and  resulted  in  the  most  fearful 
consequences  of  anything  the  world  had  seen  for  cen- 


OF    ADDISON    COFFIN.  121 

turies.  Before  it  was  over  I  found  tliat  T  could  not 
endorse  the  spirit  of  \aolence,  crimination,  recrimina- 
tion, threats  of  vielence  and  blood  and  destruction  that 
were  heard  on  evers'  side,  especially  among  the  pro- 
slavery  party.  Before  the  day  of  election  came  it 
seemed  to  be  a  settled  conviction  that  the  slave  power 
would  fight  if  they  lost  the  election,  and  the  voice  of 
the  Republican  party  seemed  ^Tight  if  you  dare,"  and 
when  the  first  gun  was  fired  there  was  a  secret  thrill 
oi  joy  in  the  hearts  of  thousands  who  longed  for  an 
opportunity  to  avenge  the  insults  received  in  the  past 
from  slave  holders,  and  the  slave  power,  and  to  this 
spirit  belong  many  of  the  wanton  acts  of  destruction 
of  property  in  the  slave  states. 

When  the  war  was  really  upon  us  with  all  il 
meant,  and  all  that  it  ultimately  WDuld  bring  about, 
the  destruction  of  slavery,  my  neighlK)rs  and  the  com- 
mimity  were  astonished  to  find  me  not  only  holding- 
back  in  the  wild  storm  of  patriotic  indignation  and 
cry  of  vengeance  against  the  rebels,  but  actively  op- 
jx)sing  the  war  spirit,  attributing  it  to  pure  love  of  op- 
•position,  they  resorted  to  threats  of  perscaial  violence 
against  me,  and  at  one  time  an  effort  was  made  to  or- 
ganize a  mob.  That  I  should  oppose  a  war  that  would 
end  slavery,  against  which  T  had  been  fighting  all  my 
life,  was  more  than  some  people  were  willing  to  tol- 
erate.    They  could  not  understand  that  I  looked  upon 


122  LIFE    AND    TRAVELS 

all  war  as  legalized  murder,  and  that  Christians  could 
not  approve,  or  support  it.  At  one  time  there  was  a 
call  for  voluntary  contributions  to  relieve  the  suffering 
of  the  soldiers  in  the  army.  The  call  was  very  popular 
and  was  universally  responded  to  by  all  classes  except- 
ing Job  Hadley  and  myself,  we  decisively  refused  t<) 
contribute  one  cent  in  any  form,  or  under  any  pre- 
tense. We  were  tried  on  the  plea  that  it  would  be 
applied  to  assist  the  sick  and  wounded  in  the  hospitals, 
etc.,  but  all  to  no  purpose,  we  were  conscientious 
against  all  and  every  form  of  war. 

At  one  time  the  county  commissioners  levied  a  tax 
to  pay  bounties  to  men  who  volunteered  in  the  armv ; 
this  tax  we  also  refused  to  pay,  and  it  was  not  collected . 
Another  form  of  contributing  was  for  the  support  of 
the  wives  and  children  of  the  men  in  the  army,  and 
especially  for  the  widows  of  those  who  lost  their  lives 
in  the  seiwice.  All  this  we  refused  to  pay,  and  we 
found  ourselves  antagonizing  the  opinions,  and  in 
some  cases,  incurring  the  hatred  of  many  in  the  com- 
munity. We  felt  this  keenly,  but  the  Lord  was  with 
us  in  the  midst  of  all  our  trial  of  faith,  but  as  the  war 
went  on,  and  the  very  life  of  the  nation  seemed  at 
stake,  we  found  that  we  must  adhere  unflinchingly  to 
our  convictions  of  duty. 

There  was  one  thing  we  found  to  do,  and  we  did  it 
faithfully  without  once  thinking  of  l>eing  credited  for 


OF    ADDISON    COFFIN.  123 

it.  There  were  luaiiy  poor  widows  and  orphans  not 
connected  with  the  war,  and  in  the  intense  excitement 
over  military  movements  in  the  terrible  conflict,  thib 
class  of  the  poor  were  entirely  overlooked,  and  were 
suffering.  To  them  we  gave  the  haiidof  help,  and  their 
heartfelt  thanks  more  than  repaid  us.  At  the  close  oi 
the  war,  when  the  comnumity  again  settled  down  to 
real  life,  and  accounts  were  cast  up  it  was  found  that 
Job  Hadley  and  I  had  done  more  in  charity  than  any 
of  the  others,  and  we  felt  happier  in  having  done  so 
than  they  seemed  to  feel. 

Though  not  active  in  promoting  and  sustaining 
the  war,  I  was  not  idle,  nor  wholly  disconnected  with 
it;  many  times  I  assisted  parents  in  finding  where  their 
sons  were  stationed  in  the  army,  or  where  they  had 
fallen;  or  in  counseling  how  to  get  the  remains 
brought  home  for  burial,  etc.  Sometimes  a  more 
serious  matter  would  come  to  light.  Some  poor  boy, 
homesick  and  tired  of  the  hardships  and  horrors  of 
war,  would  come  to  me  for  help  and  advice,  for  it  was 
impossible  for  him  to  remain  long  concealed,  and  the 
penalty  for  desertion  was  severe.  Here  was  a  trial  of 
human  sympathy.  They  who  aided,  or  concealed  de- 
serters w^ere  alike  guilty  and  had  to  suffer,  but  my  ex- 
perience in  underground  railroad  came  to  my  help, 
and  in  every  case  the  boy  was  saved  from  punishment, 


124  LIFE    AND   TRAVELS 

and  the  odium  of  being  a  deserter,  and  served  out  Lis 
time. 

As  war  develops  all  the  darker  and  stormier  pas- 
sions of  the  human  heart,  so  it  was  in  our  civil  war, 
every  fojm  of  sin,  vice  and  crime  became  active  and 
aggressive,  one  of  which  was  ^ ^bounty  jumping."  Au 
unprincipled  man  Avould  enlist  in  the  army,  draw  the 
bounty,  often  $400,  then  desert,  go  to  another  place, 
enlist  again,  draw  the  bounty  and  desert;  this  got  to  be 
so  intolerable  that  many  were  shot.  One  time  I  was 
at  Indianapolis  assisting  in  getting  a  boy  released,  who 
was  drafted  into  the  army;  while  there  two  ugly  look- 
ing boimty  jumpers  were  brought  in  under  arrest  for 
the  crime ;  they  stoutly  denied  being  deserters^  or  hav- 
ing any  money,  and  demanded  a  fair  trial.  I  was 
standing  not  far  away;  the  provost  marshal  called  mo 
to  come  and  see  the  fellows  examined.  Their  coats 
were  first  inspected  closely,  then  their  vests,  then  they 
were  required  to  strip  off  their  pants,  but  still  no 
money  was  found;  then  their  underclothes,  but  the 
closest  search  found  no  money,  but  at  last  the  provost 
marshal  ordered  their  dirty  socks  to  be  taken  off,  th(3 
guard  thrust  his  hand  rather  reluctantly  into  one  cf 
them,  but  instantly  his  eyes  brightenetl  and  when  he 
drew  out  his  hand  it  was  full  of  greenback  money. 
The  money  was  handed  over  to  the  paymaster,  and  the 
men  taken  to  the  guardhouse;  there  was  a  dark,  re- 


OF    ADDISON    COFFIN.  125 

vengeful  look  in  their  faces  as  they  disappeared.  1 
never  knew  their  fate,  but  give  this  as  one  of  the  events 
daily  occurring  at  Indianapolis  during  the  war. 

During  1868-64  there  was  not  a  farmer  in  Hen- 
dricks county  whose  parents  or  himself  had  emigrated 
from  the  South,  but  had  one  or  more  deserters  froip. 
the  Confederate  army,  or  refugees  from  Southern 
conscription:  especially  was  this  the  case  from  North 
Carolina  and  Tennessee,  and  they  were  of  immen^^e 
.benefit  to  the- country  in  Ohio,  Indiana,  Illinois,  for 
they  took  the  place  of  the  men  who  had  joined  the 
Union  army;  nor  w^as  the  benefit  all  on  one  side,  the 
refugees  received  good  wages,  and  when  the  war  closed 
were  better  off  in  money  at  least  than  if  there  had 
been  no  war. 

At  one  time  a  company  of  400  Confederate  pris- 
oners were  brought  to  Indianapolis  from  Louisiana. 
They  were  all  of  French  descent,  and  had  been  farm 
laborers.  They  were  not.  rebels  at  heart,  but  were 
conscripted  into  the  Southern  army.  Learning  the 
wages  farm  hands  received  they  wanted  to  w^ork.  A 
contract  for  cutting  Avood  was  found,  and  they  were 
sent  out  under  guard  and  did  splendid  work.  In  a 
short  time  all  the  guards  but  one  w^ould  disperse  to 
have  a  good  time.  The  prisoners  needed  no  guard. 
Tliey  were  doing  so  well  they  would  not  even  escape. 
Once  wlien  quitting  time  came  the  one  guard  was 


126  LIEE    AND    TRAVELS 

drunk  and  lliey  carried  him  in.  Finally  they  were 
suffered  to  hunt  work  anywhere,  and  only  required 
to  report  at  stated  times.  At  the  close  of  the  war 
many  of  them  settled  in  Indiana.  These  are  incidents 
that  came  up,  showing  the  under  current  of  life  that 
flowed  on,  while  the  war  was  raging  in  the  South. 

After  a  lingering  sickness  and  great  suffering 
brother  Alfred's  wife,  Mary  Elizabeth  C'offin,  died 
October  15,  1860,  leaving  him  with  his  two  little  girls 
in  quite  a  helpless  condition,  so  far  as  housekeeping 
was  concerned,  but  events  soon  changed  the  whole 
situation. 

The  latter  part  of  1862  he  was  called  into  the 
government  service  as. a  physician,  to  take  charge  of 
the  refue-ee  Indians  in  Southern  Kansas.  At  the 
breaking  out  of  the  rebellion  a  part  of  the  Indians  in 
Indian  territory  remained  loyal  and  were  driven  from 
the  territors'  and  took  refuge  in  Kansas  and  claimed 
and  received  government  protection.  Cousin  William 
G.  Coffin  w^as  appointed  superintendent  of  those 
refugees,  and  he  called  brother  to  take  charge  of  the 
medical  department.  On  Xew  Year's  day,  1863,  he 
started  for  his  place  of  service,  leaving  his  two  chil- 
dren with  my  wife,  who  was  to  have  care  of  them; 
this  she  did  until  they  grew  to  womanhood.  In  tho 
meantime  my  niece,  Miriam  A.  Henley,  married  Wil- 
liam .  Thomas,,   of.  Wayne    county,    Ind.,    and    they 


OF    ADDISON   COFFIN.  127 

moved  into  brotlicr's  house,  so  as  to  cultivate  the  farm 
while  he  was  gone. 

Finding  his  position  in  Southern  Kansas  a  very 
dangerous  one,  my  brother  returned  home  in  June  to 
make  a  more  satisfactory  arrangement  for  business. 
Brother  Emory  met  him  by  appointment,  intending 
to  go  to  Kansas  with  him,  but  in  a  few  days  brother 
Alfred  was  taken  with  erysipelas,  and  was  dangerously 
ill,  and  it  required  all  the  care  and  skill  possible  to 
save  him.     While  he  was  yet  feeble  William  Thomas 
and  brother  Emory  took  the  same  disease  in  a  mora 
violent  form.     On  the  morning  of  July  4th  William 
Thomas  died,  and  the  same  evening  brother  Emory 
passed  away.     This  was  a  trial  to  heart  and  strength. 
We  were  all  worn  with  waiting  and  watching,  and 
some  of  the  neighbors  were  afraid  of  the  disease,  which 
added  to  our  trial.    It  was  a  dark  time  with  us,  but  my 
wife's  undoubting  faith  and  prayers  kei^t  us  from  fail- 
ing.    William  Thomas  was  buried  at  Spring  burial 
ground  nearby;  brother  Emory  was  taken  home  toDuu- 
reith  and  buried  at  Spiceknd,  Ind.     As  soon  as  able 
Alfred  returned  to  his  post,  and  we  were  left  with  new 
responsibilities  and  new  soitows.     Though  (;are  was 
increased  and  the  way  seemed  to  darken  before  us,  the 
Lord  gave  us  stmngth,  an<l  in  the  midst  of  that  dark- 
ness, there  came  to  me  a  vision  of  hope  and  assurance 
that  reached  beyond  the  present,  on  to  the  srmshinc 


128  LIFE    AND  TRAVELS 

beyond  the  war.  jSTone  beside  my  wife,  mother  and 
Job  Hadley  were  ready  to  hear  and  receive.  We  had 
the  faith,  and  time  brought  the  sunshine  and  the  end 
was  seen,  but  ere  it  came  other  stirring  scenes  crossed 
our  path  that  called  the  mind  in  part  away  from  the 
coming  end. 

To  make  coming  events  intelligent,  it  is  necessary 
to  go  l>ack  to  the  situation  in  Indiana  during  the  war; 
as  previously  stated,  there  were  many  hundreds  of 
refugees  and  deserters  from  the  Confederate  army  in 
the  StMe,  those  refugees  had  left  families  and  friends 
whom  they  wanted  brought  to  Indiana.  There  ^vas 
also  an  emancipated  colored  man  near  my  home  whose 
wife  and  children  had  been  slaves;  now  that  they  were 
free  he  wanted  them  to  come  to  him.  This  colored 
mail  and  several  refugees  employed  me  to  go  to  ^N'orth 
Carolina  and  bring  their  folks  out  to  them,  and  the 
time  to  go  was  soon  after  the  close  of  We-stern  Yearly 
Meeting.  Now,  when  it  was  known  I  was  going  south, 
there  was  much  comment  among  many  people,  who 
said  the  Lord  in  mercy  was  sending  me  away  to  die, 
that  my  family  might  be  spared  from  seeing  the  judg- 
ment that  was  to  strike  me  down.  They  little  knew 
what  was  in  my  heart,  and  what  the  Lord  had  prom- 
ised. 

The  trip  was  made,  but  I  had  much  trouble  with 
the  former  owner  of  the  slaves,  who  at  first  refused  to 


OF    ADDISON    COFFIN.  129 

suffer  them  to  be  taken  out  of  the  State,  for  he  in  com- 
mon with  other  slave-holders  had  a  secret  belief  that 
slavery  would  be  restored,  or  they  would  get  pay  for 
their  slaves,  but  he  was  out  generaled,  and  I  returned 
to  Indiana  with  a  company  of  fifty  passengers,  mostly 
women  and  children. 

This  trip  to  North  Carolina  proved  to  be  the  l>e- 
ginning  of  my  new  life  work. 

The  winter  of  1867-68  I  made  a  trip  to  the  Island 
of  Nantucket  to  see  the  home  of  my  American  an- 
cestors on  my  father's  side;  the  route  traveled  was  by 
Philadelphia,New  York,  sound  steamer  to  Providence, 
railroad  to  Boston  and  to  Hienas,  then  by  steamer  to 
the  island.  Groing  out  the  trip  was  very  pleasant,  until 
leaving  the  port  of  Hienas;  from  there  it  was  very 
rough,  a  heavy  gale  was  blowing  and  it  was  (|uite  cold. 
On  arriving  I  sought  out  relatives  of  my  name,  and  was 
kindly  entertained,  and  si>ent  two  weeks  looking  at  old 
ancestral  relics,  examining  the  library,  museum,  the 
Coffin  college,  the  city  schools,  the  old  windmill  on  the 
hill,  and  had  a  good  social  time  with  the  people. 

Keturning  from  the  island,  two  days  were  spent 
in  Boston  visiting  the  celebrated  historic  places  in  the 
vicinity,  then  two  days  in  New  York  viewing  its  spe- 
cialties, and  none  were  more  interesting  than  Central 
Park.  At  that  day  it  was  a  marvel  of  beauty  to  my 
wondering  eyes. 


130  LIFE    AND    TRAVELS 

Two  or  three  (lavs  were  spent  in  I^hiladelphia 
very  pleavSantly,  then  the  home  run  began.  When 
Hearing  Lancaster,  Pa.,  I  was  thinking  of  what  the 
Lord  was  doing  for  nie,  and  why  one  so  utterly  un- 
Avorthy  shoiild  receive  such  mercy^  when,  in  a  moment 
of  time,  ^'that  voice  again''  spoke  in  my  heart  with 
fearful  distinctness,  ''It  is  finisheil,  henceforth  thou 
art  as  other  men."  In  another  moment  it  seemed  a 
horror  of  ^-reat  darkness  suddenly  fell  upon  me,  and  it 
was  so  fearful  that  I  doubted- whether  I  could  live. 
For  an  hour  or  more  my"condition  was  more  depressing 
than  when  lying  on  the  gTass  at  Plainfield,  and  I  was 
ready  to  cry  out  to  be  released  from  such  agony,  when 
as  suddenly  as  it  came,  the  great  darkness  vanished, 
and  a  still  small  voice  said,  ''Thy  life  is  in  thy  own 
hands,  as  thy  conduct,  so  shall  it  be  unto  thee,"  and  the 
glad  light  and  life  again  filled  my  humbled  and  thank- 
ful soul,  yet  the  transition  from  the  days  of  safety  back 
to  ordinary  life  was  not  without  its  vivid  contrast. 

After  returning  home  I  worked  on  the  farm  until 
June,  when  one  of  the  laud  agents  of  the  Missouri, 
Kansas  and  Texas  railroad  came  to  see  me  in  regard  to 
sending  emigrants  to  Kansas  to  settle  on  the  railroad 
lands,  and  he  offered  to  take  me  to  Kansas  to  examine 
the  outlook  for  settlers.  I  soon  arranged  my  business 
and  was  on  the  way,  going  by  St.  Louis  and  Sedalia, 
Mo.;  the  land  office  was  then  at  Xeosho  Falls,  Kan. 


0^    ADDISON    COFFIN.  181 

From  that  point  Iwas  sent  out  to  tlie.  South  and  West 
across  the  wide,  unoccupied  praiiie  seventy  to  eighty 
miles,  until  every  part  of  my  body  was  in  pain  with  the 
rough  driving;  part  of  the  drive  was  through  the  mag- 
nesium limestone  belt  and  very  rocky.  Returning  to 
Neosho  Falls,  I  was  taken  to  Emporia,  and  from  there 
driven  far  Up  Cottonwood  river  and  out  to  the  Hog- 
backs towards  the  Arkansas  river,  coming  back  by 
Plymouth;  here,  in  and  around  Emporia,  I  met  many 
of  my  old  friends  and  church  members,  who  were 
anxious  and  curious  to  know  all  about  my  contest  with 
the  chnrch,  and  it  had  all  to  be  talked  over  many 
times. 

The  next  point  was  Council  Grove,  from  where 
another  long  trip  was  made  westward ;  then  returning 
to  the  railroad  and  bein^-  nearly  worn  out,  I  went  to 
my  brother  Alfred's  at  Le  Hoy,  to  rest.  In  this  explor- 
ation I  saw  much  of  the  heart  of  Kansas,  for  beside  this 
vehicle  travel,  after  resting  a  few  days,  I  took  quite 
an  extensive  run  on  the  railroads,  for  they  all  very 
readily  gave  me  passes  everyw^here,  and  it  was  only  a 
question  of  ^Hime,"  when,  or  in  what  direction  my 
business,  or  curiosity  called  that  put  a  limit  to  my 
ttavel.  One  ride  will  not  be  forgotten,  from  Sedalia, 
Mo.,  to  Parsons  in  Southern  Kansas;  it  was  done  on 
top  of  a  caboose  car,  so  the  ^aew  would  l>e  unbroken  on 
all  sides;  it  was  grand  and  inspiring;  so  much  so  that 


132  LIFE    AND    TRAVELS 

sleep  was  impossible  the  next  night.  In  fact,  there 
was  but  little  sleeping  done  for  a  week;  it  was  full 
moon,  and  the  night  riding  was  as  grand  as  by  day. 
Nearly  all  the  trip  was  accomplished  in  this  way  until 
Kansas  was  graven  in  my  memory  as  boundaries  on 
an  atlas. 

When  this  journey  was  over  it  w^as  nearly  time 
for  Western  Yeaj'ly  Meeting,  w^hen  I  should  be  ''like 
other  men/'  and  there  was  some  anxiety  as  to  how 
things  might  turn.  There  was  a  rumor  abroad  that 
another  attempt  would  be  made  to  put  me  out  by  force, 
but  when  the  meeting  came,  the  spirit  had  softened 
towards  me ;  my  sudden  and  wonderful  success  in  emi- 
gration and  traveling  had  satisfied  all  that  1  was  not 
a  doomed  man.  When  the  caretakers  met  the  idea  of 
putting  me  out  was  rejected,  and  I  was  respectfully  re- 
quested to  withdraw  and  then  recorded^  as  an  intruder. 
Carrying  this  subject  forward  to  its  end  in  the  Yearly 
Meeting,  the  next  ye^r  the  caretakers  notified  me  that 
they  were  not  going  to  report  me  as  an  intruder,  in- 
timating that  it  was  getting  rather  too  much  of  a  load 
for  the  meeting  to  can-y.  and  my  name  was  no  more 
mentioned  in  the  meeting  until  I  was  a  delegate  from 
Plainfield  Quarterly  Meeting. 

Note  —  Several  references  throughout  the  work  to  the  deep  trials  and* 
almost  marvelous  experiences  of  a  somewhat  prolonged  struggle  in  his 
own  monthly  meeting  require  a  word  of  explanation.  The  account  of 
this  period  was  written  with  hesitation  and  only  at  the  urgent  request 
for  his  "  whole  life."  Now  remembering  his  seeming  reluctance,  we 
withhold  these  pages  from  publication,  simply  saying  that  whatever  the 
merits  in  the  case  may  have  been  there  was  left  no  bitterness  in  the 
spirit  of  him  who  must  have  suflfered  most. 


CHAPTEK  FOURTH. 


North  Carolina  Emigi'ation — Incidents  of  1866  in 
Connection  With  That  Exodus — Opening  Excur- 
sions to  North  Carolina — Opening  up  Excursions  to 
Other  Points — The  Beginning-  of  More  Extensive 

Explorations. 

Going  back  to  spring  of  1866,  it  is  necessary  to 
say  that  unexpectedly  the  einigTation  business  sud- 
denly presented  itself  to  me,  and  in  a  way  that  was 
rather  startling,  both  in  magnitude  and  responsibility, 
but  there  came  a  satisfying  assurance  into  my  heart 
that  all  should  go  well,  and  not  one  hair  of  the  heads  of 
those  under  my  care  should  be  harmed.  It  was  a  new 
and  strange,  yea,  a  fearful  sensation  to  be  free  from 
the  ^'law  of  death,"  and  it  was  still  more  astonishing 
to  know  that  others  were  to  be  in  like  condition  while 
in  my  care.  I  did  not  feel  that  it  was  my  work,  but 
the  work  of  a  higher  power,  that  it  was  mv  part  to  be 
as  a  dutiful  child  in  tlie  hands  of  a  kind  Father.  AVith 
9  (133) 


134  LIFE    AND    TRAVELS 

this  feeling,  and  under  this  influence,  the  wonderful 
work  of  1866  began. 

The  fii*st  company  of  emigrants  went  west  in 
March,  and  was  made  up  largely  of  men  and  boys, 
about  one  hundred  in  all.  The  April  company  in- 
creased to  two  hundred,  and  was  a  surprise  to  the  citi- 
zens of  Greensboro;  it  was  at  least  half  women  and 
children.  The  May  company  still  increased  in  num- 
bers, and  the  larger  part  were  women  and  children, 
most  of  them  the  families  of  refugees;  by  this  time  the 
business  began  to  attract  attention  at  both  ends  of  the 
line  of  travel.  There  was  also  much  trouble  in  hand- 
ling the  baggage,  for  it  was  in  every  form  and  shape, 
from  a  regular  trunk,  down  through  boxes,  bales,  bun- 
dles, to  old  fashioned  saddle-bags  and  pockets,  resem- 
bling a  double  havervsack.  The  railroads  would  not 
<:'heck  half  the  unwieldy  luggage;  to  meet  the  difficulty 
I  had  tag's  printed  and  numbered.  A  tag  was  attached 
to  every  piece  of  baggage  and  the  number  written  in  a 
l>ook,  so  I  could  identify  them;  this  was  a  success,  and 
the  railroads  agreed  to  transport,  though  sometimes  it 
would  look  impossible  to  bring  order  out  of  a  confused 
lieap,  or  carload  of  my  emigrant  baggage.  The  June 
■eompanv  numbered  over  300,  nearly  all  women  and 
children,  and  at  starting  many  predicted  that  I  would 
not  get  so  helpless  a  party  through,  but  they  did  not 
3<:now  the  unseen  power  that  was  supjwrting  me,  and 


OF   ADDISON   COFFIN.  135 

guarding  the  emisfrants.  The  business  was  now  ex- 
citing fi:en'eral  attention ;  tho  raih-oads  realized  that  new 
aiTangements  would  have  to  be  made  to  accommodate 
the  travel  and  carry  the  bagg'ag'e.  I  saw  the  necessity 
of  having  through  emigrant  tickets,  special  baggage 
cars,  and  the  emigrant  cars  attached  to  the  rear  of  the 
trains,  etc.,  etc.  This  was  soon  accomplished,  and  emi- 
grant tickets  were  made  from  Greensboro  to  fourteen 
points  in  the  Northwest,  in  Ohio,  Indiana,  Illinois, 
Iowa,  Missouri  and  Kansas. 

By  this  time  the  business  had  assumed  large  pro- 
portions, in  fact,  ''very"  large  in  the  imagination  of 
those  not  intimately  acquainted  with  it.  Railroads  in 
the  West  having  land  grants  sent  agents  and  passes  to 
me  to  solicit  me  to  send  some  of  my  emigrants  to  settle 
their  lands.  People  in  Xorth  Carolina  thought  I 
owned  the  train  that  took  the  parties  West,  and  manv 
boys  and  young  men  applied  for  a  chance  to  work' 
their  passage  West,  and  some  even  wrote  to  me  asking 
for  ompiovment  as  locomotive  engineers.  All  through 
North  Carolina,  Coffin^s  emi2:rant  train  became  almost 
a  fixed  institution,  and  in  spite  of  all  my  explanations, 
was  not  rightly  understood  by  any  but  the  railroad 
managers,  some  of  whom  have  manv  amusing  memor- 
ies of  the  uncouth  and  untrained  crowds  that  filled 
some  of  the  cars.  The  devastation  of  the  war  had  left 
the  country  threadbare  in  every  sense,  and  many  of  the 


186  LIFE    AND    TRAVELS 

emigrants  looked  and  were  &o;  added  to  this  tlieir 
eager,  anxious  wondering  countenances,  when  they 
realized  thev  had  found  Coffin's  train,  often  made  a 
picture  to  be  remembered. 

From  June  the  companies  increased  until  they 
made  a  train  load.  Through  July,  August  and  Sep- 
tember the  women  and  children  outnumbered  the  men 
and  boys  two  to  one,  and  my  w^ork,  care  and  responsi- 
bility increased  almost  l>eyond  my  ability  to  manage; 
sometimes  twenty  different  persons  in  the  Xorthwest 
would  send  money  to  bring  families  and  relatives  to 
them,  and  very  often  there  was  not  enough  money 
sent,  and  I  was  called  on  for  help;  in  this  way  I  paid 
out  much  of  my  earnings,  and  rarely  ever  received  a 
return.  Many  times  there  were  mothers  with  four  to 
six  children  going  to  husband  and  friends.  They  had 
never  traveled  l)efore,  and  they  were  full  of  anxiety 
about  their  safety,  and  still  more  concerned  as  to  hoAv 
they  were  to  know  where  to  stop  and  what  to  do  when " 
they  stopped;  to  some  it  was  difficult  to  understand 
how  I  could  know  when  and  where  to  put  so  many  peo- 
ple off,  and  tell  them  what  to  do.  With  several  hun- 
dred passengers  of  this  kind,  it  was  a  severe  tax  on  my 
jK>wer  of  endurance,  and  often  there  was  no  chance  to 
get  any  sleep  between  Baltimore  and  Indianapolis.  At 
the  latter  place  my  obligation  ended,  after  seeing  all 
on  the  diverging  trains,  though  I  had  fre(juently  to  go 


OF   ADDISON    COFFIN.  137 

to  St.  Louis,  Lafayette  and  other  points  to  look  after 
misplaced  baggage.  My  checks  were  always  canceled 
at  Indianapolis. 

There  was  much  excitement  at  Greensboro  the 
latter  part  of  the  year  about  so  many  people  leaving 
the  state  and  taking  so  much  money  away  from  the 
business  entei'jirises  that  were  contemplaterl.  Many 
refugees  had  left  debts  behind,  and  now  their  families 
^yere  leaving  there  was  less  hope  than  ever  of  a  settle- 
ment. Many  absconding  debtors  took  advantage  of 
the  opportunity  to  get  their  families  off  wdth  me,  while 
they  went  by  private  roads  overland.  One  effort  was 
made  to  break  up  my  business  by  having  me  arrested 
for  aiding  absconding  debtors  in  leaving  the  state,  but 
I  had  taken  the  precaution  to  gain  the  protection  of  the 
military  commander  of  the  state,  and  I  had  authority 
t-o  take  all  who  interfered  with  me  to  Kaleigh  to  the 
military  headquarters.  Wlien  this  was  known  in  20 
minutes  the  parties  gave  up  all  thought  of  stopping 
me  and  were  ever  after  silent. 

In  September,  October  and  ^N'ovember  there  were 
five  to  seven  hundred  souls  each:  time,  and  the  train 
and  the  change  from  rail  to  steamer  at  Portsmouth 
was  the  beginning  of  wonders  to  both  emigrants  and 
bystandei-s,  then  the  march  from  the  landing  to  raiL 
road  station,  through  the  city  of  Baltimore  was  the 
crowning  w^onder  and  a  great  novelty  to  the  emigrants ; 


138  LIFE    AND    TRAVELS 

all  was  amusement  and  delight;  to  the  citizens  it  was  a 
procession  so  singular  that  hundreds  came  out  to  see 
the  apparition.  The  primitive  homespun  dress,  the 
anxious  excited  looks,  and  the  odd  bundles  and  packs 
that  nearly  all  carried  w^as  both  intenselv  interesting 
and  amusing.  There  was  much  trouble  to  keep  them 
from  straggling  in  the  march,  but  in  time  the  police 
force  became  vigilant  in  looking  after  stragglers  and 
returning  them  to  the  station  before  our  departure. 
At  the  different  stations  there  w^as  often  much  trouble 
in  preventing  a  rush  and  a  panic ;  everv  one  would  be- 
come excit-ed  lest  he  should  be  left,  or  fail  to  get  a  seat. 
After  the  train  started  it  often  took  several  houre  to  get 
all  satisfactorily  seated,  families  together,  companies 
of  neighbors  grouped  together,  the  aged  and  infinn 
comfortably  situated,  and  last,  but  not  least,  to  make 
the  mean  and  selfish  boys  behave,  though  I  can  say  to 
the  credit  of  the  emigrants,  that  there  were  very  few 
who  did  not  conduct  themselves  in  an  honorable  way 
while  in  my  care,  for  I  had  authority  in  the  South  to 
enforce  good  behavior,  and  by  common  consent  it  was 
extended  through  the  Xorthwest,  vet  it  was  not  called 
in  question,  or  necessar)'  to  use  but  once.  On  landing 
at  Indianapolis,  a  dnmken  fellow  knocked  a  woman 
down  and  pushed  auother  with  a  babe  in  her  arms 
over  backwards,  and  was  using  vile  language,  when  1 
called  to  him  to  desist.     Then  he  rushed  at  me  with 


OF    ADDISON    COFFIN.  139 

terrible  oaths,  but  I  caught  him  by  the  throat  and  be- 
gan shutting  off  his  profanity.  A  violent  struggle  fol- 
lowed. Though  he  wat?  much  the  stronger  man  I  was 
diligent  to  business  until  a  policeman  came  to  my  re- 
lief, and  the  brutal  fellow^  was  punished.  This  whole 
affair  w^as  over  in  a  little  time,  le^s  than  it  takes  to 
write  it,  yet  it  had  a  good  effect,  for  it  became  known 
along  and  at  both  ends  of  the  line  of  travel,  that  I  made 
people  behave  themselves  while  traveling  with  me. 

When  the  work  of  1866  was  ended,  ten  trips  had 
been  made  between  Indianapolis,  Ind.,  and  Greens- 
boro, N.  C,  over  5000  emigrants  had  left  North  Caro- 
lina and  South  Virginia.  The  travel  was  from  Greens- 
boro via  Raleigh  and  Weldon,  N.  C.,  to  Portsmouth, 
Va.,  by  bay  steamers  to  Baltimore,  and  thence  by 
Baltimore  and  Ohio  railroad  and  Pennsylvania  Cen- 
tral railroad  via  Columbus,  Ohio,  to  Indianapolis, 
Indiana.  From  there  they  were  distributed  by  six 
railroads  to  various  points.  This  circuitous  route  had 
to  be  made  on  account  of  the  arbitrary  rates  demanded 
bv  the  Richmond  ( Va.)  and  Danville  railroad.  The 
result  of  the  year's  work  was  a  surprise  to  everybody 
but  my  wife,  who  saw  and  felt  from  the  beginning  that 
the  Lord  was  in  it,  and  that  I  was  leading  a  life  for  two 
years  above  the  law^  of  death,  while  others  looked  upon 
it  as  a  wonderful  achievement  on  my  part.  '^We''  un- 
derstocKl  'Svho"  %vat;  upholding  me,  but  n(>  one  was 


140  LIFE    AND    TRAVELS 

ready  to  receive  it.  I  had  never  shown  myself  to  be 
much  above  my  neighboi^  in  any  way,  and  quite  in- 
ferior in  some,  and  to  have  claimed  that  the  Lord  was 
using  me  as  a  special  instrument  would  have  been  more 
than  the  community  would  have  accepted,  so  with 
hearts  full  of  gratitude  for  all  that  was  done  for  us  we 
were  '^still." 

There  was  one  incident  that  occurred  on  the  No- 
vember trip  that  will  illustrate  our  feeling.  My  wife 
accompanied  me  on  that  trip,  to  be  at  N'orth  Carolina 
Yeaidy  Meeting.  On  the  return  trip,  there  were  sev- 
eral old  and  infirm  }>eople,  who  were  trying  to  get  their 
children  out  West.  They  were  so  feeble  they  had  to  be 
carried  in  a  chair  when  changes  were  made.  To 
ordinary  people  it  looked  not  only  hopeless,  but  a 
dangerous  undertaking.  It  made  the  trainmen  nerv- 
ous to  see  them.  Strange  to  say,  they  not  only  stood 
the  journey,  but  got  stronger.  After  leaving  Balti- 
more a  child  that  had  l>een  ailing  was  taken  suddenly 
ill  and  was  pronounced  dying,  and  the  parents  and 
many  of  the  passengers  wanted  the  train  stopped,  so 
it  could  be  taken  off  and  cared  for,  but  I  refused.  This 
created  intense  excitement;  even  my  wife  plead  for  the 
child  to  be  let  off,  saying-,  'Tt  will  die  here."  With 
quite  an  excited  company  around  me  I  said,  ''This 
child  'cannot  die'  while  in  my  care ;  if  you  take  it  off 
death  is  certain."     Instantly  that  well-known  bright 


OF    ADDISON    COFFIN.  141 

light  shone  in  my  wife's  face;  she  (quietly  said,  ''Give 
me  the  child,"  then  taking  it  in  her  arms  held  it  close 
to  her  for  more  than  an  hour;  then  it  seemed  to  relax 
and  went  to  sleep,  and  from  that  moment  began  to 
improve.  The  parents  went  to  Emporia,  Kan.,  and  the 
child  grew  to  healthv  womanhood.  ''That"  removed 
all  doubts  from  our  minds. 

The  latter  part  of  December  I  returned  to  Greens- 
boro and  went  to  Columbia,  S.  C.,  and  extended  the 
emigrant  rate  to  Greenville  in  that  state,  where  there 
were  several  hundred  people  who  wished  to  go  West 
but  there  was  much  opposition  to  it;  many  seemed  to 
be  alarmed  at  the  thought  of  so  many  white  people 
lea\dng  the  state,  lest  the  freed  slaves  should  domineer 
the  whole  state,  for  out  of  the  5000  emigrants  who  had 
gone  not  more  than  150  were  I^egroes;  but  opposition 
was  no  new  thing,  and  the  emigrants  left  Granville 
like  other  places,  but  unlike  many  others  they  pushed 
into  Iowa,  Nebraska  and  even  to  Minnesota. 

In  1867  I  made  four  trips,  though  small  parties 
of  25  to  50  went  through  alone.  The  business  had  now 
become  so  well  organized  tliat  it  was  no  trouble  for 
small  parties,  as  they  were  given  the  regular  emigrant 
rate  of  $21  from  Greensboro  to  Indianapolis,  and  in 
the  same  proportion  to  other  points.  This  was  about 
half  first-class  fare. 

In  1868  I  made  two  trips,  and  in  1870  took  an 


142  LIFE    AND    TRAVELS 

excursion  to  North  Carolina  Yearly  Meeting,  which 
was  a  success,  and  was  the  beginning  of  a  business  as 
unexpected  as  the  emigration.  AVhen  the  party  re- 
turned they  ^ave  such  striking  descriptions  of  the  ef- 
fects of  the  war,  that  hundreds  who  had  emigrated 
years  before  now  wanted  to  revisit  their  old  homes  and 
scenes  of  childhood.  To  meet  this  new  want  I  ne- 
gotiated at  regular  excursion  rates,  and  soon,  like  the 
emigration,  it  assumed  large  propc>rtions,  and  from 
1872  to  1880,  three  to  five  hundred  excursionists 
would  go  each  year,  and  a  large  company  of  emigrants 
would  return  with  me,  and  it  became  almost  a  regular 
thing  for  excursionists  to  take  home  with  them  a  boy 
or  girl  to  help  on  the  f ann  and  in  the  house.  Cousins, 
nephews,  nieces,  tMuys  and  girls  left  without  a  home 
in  consequence  of  the  war,  were  usually  the  ones  se- 
lected to  be  taken.  In  this  way  the  emigration  con- 
tinued until  about  1880,  when  it  measurably  ceased  to 
attract  attention,  but  the  excursion  business  kept  right 
on  up  to  the  present  day,  but  there  was  this  change, 
instead  of  one  party,  there  were  two  and  three  each 
year;  always  one  at  Yearly  Meeting  time.  In  addition 
to  the  Carolina  excursions,  there  was  soon  a  demand 
for  excursions  to  the  border  states  to  see  the  vast  prair- 
ies of  the  West,  and  to  Iowa  and  Kansas  Yearly  Meet- 
ing's, which  also  assumeKl  large  proportions,  and  at 
length  I  found  myself  identified  with  a  wide  expanse 


OF    ADDISON    COFFIN.  143 

of  business,  and  cpiite  a.  traveler,  all  of  which  had  come 
to  me  almost  nncons<*ionsly. 

When  the  wonderful  spirit  of  expansion  took  pos- 
session of  the  nation,  I  found  myself  in  it  without 
knowing  why.  People  wishing  to  emigrate  to  Ivansas, 
Missouri,  Iowa,  Nebraska,  Minnesota,  Dakota,  Colo- 
rado, et<!.,  etc.,  applied  to  me  to  get  emigrant  rates  and 
freight  ears  for  their  property.  I  went  on  exploring 
trips,  first  into  the  nearer  border  states,  then  on  to  the 
Pacific  coast.  While  the  Northern  Pacific  railroad 
was  building,  an  exploration  trip  was  made  through 
Dakota,  Montana  and  Idaho  to  the  Columbia,  to  see 
the  vast  region  opened  up  in  that  direction.  I  had  un- 
limited time  and  stop-over  >irivile^es,  which  were  used 
to  see  as  wide  a  range  as  possible.  I  stopped  off  at  way 
stations,  large  and  small  places  out  on  the  mde  plain 
where  there  was  nothing  but  earth,  grass  and  sky  in 
fifty  miles,  where  men  w^ere  hunting  and  staking  off 
land  claims,  living  in  small  tents  and  in  large  diy-goods 
boxes  turned  down  on  one  side,  in  every  form  of  shelter 
ingenuity  could  devise,  all  full  of  life  and  hope.  In 
many  places  the  whole  plain  w^as  checkered  with  deep- 
ly-worn buffalo  trails,  and  as  far  as  the  eye  could  see 
sprinkled  white  wath  their  bones,  which  were  being 
gathered  in  enormous  heaps  along  the  railroad  for 
shipment  east. 

At  Jamestown,  N.  D.,  I  went  up  the  Devil  lake 


144  LIFE    AND    TRAVELS 

branch  of  the  road  past  where  the  town  of  Camngton 
now  stands,  out  into  the  unexplored,  unsurveyed  and 
then  ahnost  unknown.  Everywhere  there  was  the 
vast  unbroken,  limitless  expanse  of  sky  and  grass,  with 
a  soil  capable  of  limitless  production,  and  I  realized 
that  I  was  in  the  vast  wheat  field  that  is  to  bread  the 
world.  Then  I  passed  the  Bad  Lands,  or  Hell  Put  Out, 
as  the  cowboys  call  it,  where  has  been  a  lake  of  boiling 
molten  matter,  and  suddenly  an  ocean  of  water  has 
been  jx)ured  into  it.  It  is  beyond  the  power  of  man 
to  imagine  the  fearful  commotion  that  would  follow, 
but  there  before  and  around  us  is  the  result;  great  hills, 
mounds,  ridges  and  almost  mountains  of  cinder,  scoria, 
volcanic  rocks  and  vitrified  matter  thrown,  whirled 
and  contorted  into  a  thousand  shapes,  literally  a  place 
of  utter  desolation  and  desolate  forever.  The  material 
af  which  those  mounds  and  hills  are  formed  is  so  loose 
that  it  is  nearly  impossible  for  man  or  animal  to  climb 
them,  nor  does  any  one  feel  much  desire  to  try  the  ex- 
periment. 

Though  the  scene  is  interesting  and  full  of  sug- 
gestive speculation,  yet  few  wish  to  linger  long  amid 
such  terrible  surroundings.  Passing  on  across  a 
broken  rolling  country  with  alternate,  beautiful  grassy 
valleys  and  rock^^  barred  ridges,  we  finally  reach  the 
Yellowstone  river  and  valley,  which  has  long  been  a 
wonder  land,  and  in  recent  years  become  of  all  lands 


OF    ADDISON    COFFIN.  145 

of  the  (^arth  the  UK»st  wonderful,  since  the  National 
Park  is  now  accessible.     To  get  a  clear,  intelligent 
view  of  the  valley,  I  rode  the  entire  length  on  top  of  a 
caboose  car,  with  a  good  glass  by  which  the  whole 
valley  and  adjacent  plains  were  brought  under  re- 
view.    The  valley  proper  is  about  400  miles  long;  the 
river  is  a  strong,  rapidly  flowing  stream,  navigable 
much  of  its  distance  in  spring  and  summer,  while  the 
snow  is  melting  on  the  mountains.    This  valley  is  very 
fertile,  and  destined  to  be  of  vast  importance  in  the 
future;  there  is  unlimited  water  power,  and  it  is  near 
the  center  of  the  great  wheat  field  of  the  world,  and  be- 
fore another  generation  passes  the  now  world-wide 
celebrated  Minneapolis  mills  will  be  dwarfed  by  the 
mills  of  the  Yellowstone  river. 

To  the  south  of  the  valley  can  be  seen  on  a  large 
scale  one  of  the  unaccountable  geological  phenomenon 
that  baffles  scientific  speculation.  There  is  an  ex- 
tensive level  plain,  covered  with  luxuriant  grass,  which 
presents  such  an  appearance  as  to  lead  one  to  believe 
that  the  entire  plain  had  once  been  80  to  100  feet 
higher  than  now,  and  that  three-fourths  of  it  had  sud- 
denly sunk  down,  leaving  the  other  one-fourth  stand- 
ing in  irregular  hills,  mounds  and  ridges,  and  some- 
times there  are  hundreds  of  almost  columns  standing 
thick  like  huge  trees;  to  add  to  the  wonder,  the  top's 
of  all  those  hills  and  ridges  are  perfectly  level  and  hori- 


146  LIFE    AND    TRAVELS 

zontal  with  the  plain,  and  the  rock  strata  in  them  is  also 
horizontal  and  undisturbed  by  the  sinking  of  the  plain, 
or  their  being  ''thrust  up"  by  volcanic  action.  One 
day  this  will  be  a  land  of  romance  and  beauty  to  the 
now  far-off  noisy  rushing  world.  These  singular 
plains  are  very  fertile,  with  unlimited  facilities  for  ir- 
rigation. 

A  short  stop  was  made  at  Big  Horn  river  to  ex- 
amine that  rich  and  promising  valley.  There  were  a 
dozen  families  in  tents,  the  wives  and  children,  while 
the  husbands  were  off  up  the  valley  locating  home- 
steads. Here  was  one  of  the  beautiful  pictures  of  our 
American  home  life  and  nation  building;  here  were 
cheerful,  sweet-faced  mothei's  in  the  prime  of  life,  with 
families  of  bright  girls  and  boys,  away  from  civiliza- 
tion, away  from  home  camforts,  in  the  midst  of  an  al- 
most unknown  region  and  wild,  rugged  mountains, 
ready  to  brave  the  dangers  and  privations  of  pioneer 
life.  Here  I  cannot  refrain  from  adding  what  I  saw 
after  fifteen  yeai-s  had  passed.  The  eye  could  hardly 
believe  the  vision  that  opened  before  it.  That  Big 
Horn  valley  w^as  a  vast  expanse  of  beautiful  fields, 
dotted  all  over  with  fine  homes;  the  mothers'  heads 
were  turning  gray,  but  the  sweet  look  was  still  in  their 
smiling  eyes;  and  above  all  their  girls  and  boys  had 
grown  to  noble  man  and  womanliood,  and  were  making 
glad  the  now  bright  and  prosperous  valley.     This  is 


OF    ADDISON    COFFIN.  147 

but  one  of  hundreds  o£  such  scenes  I  have  witnessed  in 
twenty-five  years,  some  of  which  cannot  fade  from 
memory. 

From  the  YeHowstone  valley  we  cross  the  Boze- 
man  range  of  the  Rcx^kies,  and  come  out  into  the 
Gallatin  valley,  ''which"  after  all  I  have  seen  of  other 
lands  still  remains  "beautiful"  among  many  pleasing 
memories.  The  valley  is  about  sixty  miles  long  and 
fifteen  wide,  completely  surrounded  with  high  moun- 
tains, the  summits  of  some  of  them  so  grouped  to- 
gether, that  they  form  a  charming  and  impressive  pic- 
ture. To  the  northeast  is  th-e  celebrated  Flat  Head 
pass,  where  the  mountain  range  is  cleft  to  the  very 
base  with  a  grand  view,  not  only  through  the  range, 
but  to  the  wide  region  beyond.  Baron  Humboldt 
passed  through  this  cleft  in  his  wonderful  travels  dur- 
ing the  past  generation.  About  thirty  years  ago  a  se- 
cession of  several  hundred  Mormons  came  to  this  val- 
ley and  planted  themselves  near  the  Bozeman,  and  by 
their  skill  in  in^gation  and  industry  were  soon  sur- 
rounded with  fertile  fields  and  pleasant  homes,  so  that 
the  place  became  a  resting  spot  for  wanderei-s  through 
that  unoccupied  region.  N'ear  the  west  end  of  the  val- 
ley lived  a  singular  man  named  Frank  Dunbar,  from 
^orth  Carolina,  who  had  been  there  twenty-one  years, 
and  had  devoted  most  of  his  time  to  raising  horses,  but 
all  the  time  believed  that  s<jmething  would  "happen 


i48  LIFE    AND   TRAVELS 

for  liirn"  and  ''that"  valley;  so  when  the  Xorthern 
Pacific  railroad  came  to  him  and  built  the  town  of 
Gallatin  on  his  land  it  did  "happen." 

A  short  distance  from  Gallatin,  the  three  rivers, 
Gallatin,  Madison  and  Jefferson  meet  and  form  the 
Missouri.  This  point  is  destined  to  become  historic,  for 
here  Gaptains  Lewis  and  Clark  spent  the  winter  of 
1804  and  1805  on  their  celebrated  exploring  expedi- 
tion from  St.  Louis  to  the  Pacific.  A\Tiile  standing 
near  the  spot  I  could  but  think  how  impossible  it 
would  have  been  to  have  convinced  them  that  inside  of 
16  years  that  place  would  be  c»ccupied  by  white  people 
and  a  railroad,  a  thing  then  not  thought  of,  ninning 
close  by  that  camping  place  in  the  heart  of  an  un- 
known region.  Nor  did  I,  when  a  boy,  while  reading 
the  narrative  of  Lewis  and  (^lark  and  Casse's  Journal, 
then  used  as  a  school  reader,  ever  "dream"  that  I 
would  stand  on  the  same  ground  in  the  van  of  civiliza- 
tion that  has  now  covered  the  continent,  but  the  facts 
were  before  me,  and  it  filled  my  wiind  with  inexpress- 
ible delight  and  enjoyment.  The  scene  around  was 
grand  and  inspiring,  independent  of  history,  but  when 
nature  and  history  united  there,  was  a  greater  interest 
to  river,  mountain,  rocks  and  sun  lit  valley,  and  so 
another  i)icture  was  added  to  the  tablet  of  memory. 

What  lies,  beyond  that  point  more  properly  be- 
longs to  the  Pacific  coast,  and  we  will  turn  back  and  re- 


OF    ADDISON    COFFIN.  149 

view  the  country  as  coming  from  the  west.  During  the 
outward  journey  many  of  the  mountain  ranges  were 
still  covered  with  snow,  now  (about  May  20th)  the 
lower  ranges  were  uncovered,  and  all  the  streams  were 
in  full  tide,  and  the  June  flood  of  the  Mississippi  was 
on  its  way  to  the  gulf,  and  among  the  mountains  and 
hills,  there  was  heard  the  sound  of  many  waters,  ra- 
vines and  fforges  were  raging  fearful  torrents,  which 
were  dry  three  months  later;  logs  were  being  floated 
down  from  the  hills  where  soon  would  be  no  water  in 
sight.  All  this  gave  continued  interest  to  all  the  sur- 
roundings. 

When  we  returned  into  the  Yellowstone  valley 
again  it  was  full  of  new  entertainment,  new  features 
presented  themselves  at  every  turn ;  the  western  slopes 
of  the  hills  and  mountains,  in  many  places,  showed 
new  geological  phenomena;  there  were  traces  of  vol- 
canic action  unseen  from  eastward;  everywhere  was 
the  eroding  mark  of  great  torrents  of  water  at  higher 
levels  than  the  valley  of  to-day ;  the  twisted  and  con- 
torted strata  showed  a  succession  of  volcanic  activity 
that  would  be  deeply  instructive  to  observing  scien- 
tists and  amateur  geologists.  There  was  also  much 
that  was  interesting  in  the  signs  of  rural  life;  hun- 
dreds of  white  tents  and  pole  cabins  were  seen  along 
the  river  bank  and  small  streams,  and  out  on  the  broad 
valley  were  hundreds  of  plowmen  turning  up  the 
10 


150  LIFE    AND    TRAVELS 

deep,  rich,  alluAial  soil  for  the  first  time  since  the 
world  beg^ii.  Around  the  tents  and  cabins  were  signs 
of  home  life;  the  garden,  with  chickens  enjoying  the 
warm  sunshine  amid  their  new  sun*oundings,  while 
near  by  was  a  cow  tethered  to  a  stake,  feeding  on  the 
fresh,  luxuriant  grass. 

Sitting  on  the  caboose,  all  these  things  passed  like 
a  magic  panorama;  even  the  people  seemed  as  though 
they  too  were  moving  and  acting  in  a  new  world. 
Sometimes  the  little  children  would  stop  their  play^ 
to  look  at  some  new  shade  of  light  that  fell  upon 
the  mountains,  or  was  reflected  from  the  chalk  cliffs 
that  shone  in  the  clear  sunlight.  The  first  advancing 
tide  of  humanity  and  Christian  civilization  had 
reached  those  far-oft"  lands,  where  in  the  near  future 
millions  would  throng,  and  cover  that  strange,  ro- 
mantic region..  Who  knoAvs  but  in  the  coming  time 
the  Yellowstone  Valley  may  be  to  the  great,  new 
northwest  what  the  Valley  of  the  Euphrates  was  to 
Western  Asia  in  the  ages  gone?  It  is  in  the  center 
of  a  broader  land,  w4th  almost  limitless  capabilities. 

The  return  across  the  great  plain  to  Fargo  and 
the  Red  River  of  the  IsTorth  was  more  interesting  than 
the  outward  trip.  My  comprehension  seemed  to 
gTasp  more  fully  our  wonderful  resources  as  a  nation, 
and  our  marvelous  outlet  for  expansion.  Right  here 
Ave  had  a  gTeat  extent  of  wheat-producing  soil  that 


OF    ADDISON    COFFIN.  151 

was  capable  of  providing  bread  for  the  whole  world. 
I  stopped  off  at  the  stations  and  on  the  wayside  to  talk 
with  the  pioneers,  and  I  could  draw  out  a  recital  of 
their  hopes,  ambitions,  and  aspirations.  My  own 
experience  in  early  life,  and  the  taste  of  pioneer  life 
in  Indiana,  enabled  me  to  speak  to  and  sympathize 
with  every  condition,  while  learning  everywhere  the 
wonderful  lesson,  how  the  Lord  was  leading  and  gTiid- 
ing  the  nation-builders  here  on  the  vdde  plains, 
yonder  in  a  beautiful  valley,  and  still  beyond  among 
the  giant  mountains,  as  out-posts  and  beacons  of  the 
coming  tide  of  humanity.  It  was  wonderful,  won- 
derful, wonderful. 

A  short  stop  was  made  at  Minneapolis,  Minn., 
among  my  California  friends ;  also  a  day  in  Iowa,  then 
on  -home,  where  my  neighbors  and  friends  eagerly 
awaited  my  re|x>rt,  for  the  spirit  of  emigration  was 
in  the  land,  and  thousands  w^ere  looking  forward  to 
joining  the  great  overland  emigTation.  I  wrote  a 
series  of  articles  for  the  '^Indiana  Farmer,"  and  other 
papers;  also  answ^ered  many  letters  of  inquiry  as  to 
the  result  of  mv  northwest  trip,  which  seemed  to  give 
satisfaction,  and  the  tide  of  emigTation  flowed  with 
increased  activitv  in  that  direction. 


CHAPTER  FIFTH. 


Crushed  Beneath  a  Loaded  Wagon — Fearful  Suffer- 
ing— Called  Back  From  Death — Angel  Visitants 
— Recovery  Miraculous. 

To  keep  the  cuiTent  of  events  in  hamionv  with 
my  onward  narrative,  it  will  be  necessary  to  give  some 
important  domestic  occurrences,  which  had  an  influ- 
ence on  all  subsequent  movementii.  In  the  early 
spring  of  1880,  I  was  crushed  by  a  heavy,  loaded 
wagon  in  such  a  way  that  all  my  ribs  but  two  were 
broken,  my  breast  badly  mashed,  and  my  right 
shoulder  broken.  When  the  wagon  passed  over  me 
the  pain  was  so  fearful  that  I  thought  it  would  be 
impossible  for  me  to  live.  Raising  up,  I  felt  a  strange, 
swimming  sensation,  as  if  slowly  rising  up  into  the  air. 
This  seemed  so  real  that  I  looked  towards  the  bam 
near  by  to  see  if  it  was  really  true  that  I  was  going 
away ;  but  things  all  seemed  fixed,  and  almost  instantly 
there  came  a  sudden  hush  around,  and  a  real  sinking 
(152) 


OF    ADDISON    COFFIN.  153 

sensation  that  was  of  such  a  character  that  I  felt  that 
death  was  at  hand,  as  the  human  mind  is  capable  of 
working  and  thinking  with  lightning  ^eed  in  emer- 
gencies. As  I  felt  I  conld  live  bnt  a  few  moments, 
I  thought  of  vnle  and  daughter,  who  were  in  the 
house  not  far  away;  and  that  they  might  know  that 
I  was  conscious  to  the  last,  I  folded  my  arms  and 
laid  down,  saying,  '*And  this  is  death;  how  simple 
and  easy  a  thing  it  is  to  die,"  and  I  was  carried  away. 
When  consciousness  returned  wife  and  daughter  were 
lifting  me  up,  but  there  was  a  sensation  of  suffoca- 
tion that  was  terrible,  with  a  rack  of  agonizing  pain; 
but  as  they  lifted  me  up  the  broken  spines  of  my  ribs 
that  had  been  forced  into  my  lungs  withdrew,  and 
breath  came  to  me  once  more. 

I  was  taken  to  the  house  in  gi'eat  pain,  such  as 
language  cannot  describe.  As  soon  as  they  got  me 
on  a  bed,  my  daughter  started  for  a  doctor,  over  a 
mile  away.  Inside  of  forty  minutes  she  was  back 
again,  and  in  a  few  seconds  the  doctor,  a  strong, 
active  man,  came  in  out  of  breath.  It  was  de<^ided 
by  him  that  I  could  not  live  many  hours,  and  all  that 
could  be  done  was  to  give  me  chloral  to  relieve  my 
intense  suffering.  This  was  done,  and  at  the  end  of 
eight  hours  I  still  lived,  but  had  to  take  large  fjuan- 
tities  of  chloral.  And  so  it  went  for  three  days,  do<'- 
tor,  neighbors  and  friends  said  I  could  not  live.      My 


154  LIFE    AND   TRAVELS 

body  was  so  badlv  crushed  and  internal  bleeding  had 
been  so  profuse  that  it  did  seem  there  was  no  hope; 
but  wife  said:  ''I  cannot  give  him  up;  he  must  not, 
cannot,  shall  not  die."  Her  devotion  and  faith  were 
very  touching  to  all,  who  were  very  kind  in  helping 
her  and  daughter;  so  I  continued  to  suffer  untold 
agony  day  by  day,  with  no  attempt  to  give  any  exam- 
ination or  set  the  broken  bones.  I,  as  well  as  all 
others,  knew  that  any  effort  of  that  kind  would  result 
in  instant  death.  At  the  end  of  three  weeks  my  pains 
had  not  abated,  and  hope  began  to  gTOw  dim;  with- 
out relief  death  would  soon  come.  One  afternoon 
when  it  seemed  as  though  the  pain  was  too  great  for 
me  to  bear  longer,  a  feeling  similar  to  that  at  first 
began  to  come  over  me,  and  I  was  again  going  to  pass 
on.  While  Ijing  still,  almost  glad  that  the  hour  was 
so  near  when  my  sufferings  would  end,  suddenly  two 
wonderfully  beautiful  beings  were  standing  in  the 
room  near  me.  I  recognized  them  as  being  like  those 
I  had  seen  in  vision  in  childhood.  They  were  so 
lovely,  their  looks  so  divine,  and  such  infinite  ten- 
derness in  their  eyes,  that  it  overpowered  me  into  a 
feeling  of  utter  nothingness,  so  that  I  tried  to  hide  my 
face,  but  could  not.  This  language  flashed  through 
my  mind  like  fire:  ''What  am  I  that  such  beautiful 
beings  should  visit  me?  I  am  but  as  dust  'oud  ashes.*' 
Then  in  a  moment  another  beautiful  being  stood  close 


OF    ADDISON    COFFIN.  155 

to  my  bed,  and  looked  into  my  face  with  eyes  and 
countenance  that  human  language  cannot  describe; 
and  I  was  still  more  startled  to  recognize  this  latter  as 
being  the  redeemed  spirit  of  a  negro,  and,  if  possible, 
more  sublimely  tender  and  lovely  than  the  other  two; 
and  this  language  spoken  in  my  heart:  '^Inasmuch 
sis  thou  did  it  unto  one  of  the  least  of  these,  my  breth- 
ren, thou  didst  it  unto  me."  It  was  more  than  1 
could  bear,  and  light  and  life  seemed  to  vanish.  My 
wife,  who  had  stepped  from  the  joom  for  a  short 
time,  came  in  and  found  me  rapidly  sinking,  and  there 
seemed  to  be  no  hope  of  saving  me.  lUit  her  love 
was  stronger  than  death;  she  called  me  back  to  life 
again,  and  in  spite  of  the  suffering,  weakness  and  help- 
lessness, I  still  lived  on.  At  last  there  came  a  time 
when  the  life  cun-ent  began  to  return,  and  to  the  sur- 
prise and  joy  of  all  it  was  evident  that  I  would  live. 
My  recovery  was  slow,  and  it  was  feared  that  I 
might  be  helpless  and  deformed  for  life;  but  as  the 
days  passed  and  I  began  walking  about,  I  was  truly 
thankful  to  the  Lord  for  another  lease  of  life,  and 
that  my  deformity  was  no  greater  than  it  was.  As 
to  the  visitation  of  the  angels,  we  thought,  as  in  other 
similar  cases,  that  the  community  was  not  ready  to 
receive  it,  so  we  confined  our  communications  to  a 
few  friends.  But  there  came  a  time  when  it  was 
necessary  to  give  it  a  wider  knowledge. 


156  LIFE    AND    TRAVELS 

Some  kind  and  very  zealous  f^eople  became  con- 
cerned about  my  not  taking  a  more  active  part  in 
a  religious  revival,  and  that  I  was  not  noisy  enough  in 
the  meetings.  With  this  feeling  they  visited  me,  and 
made  known  their  anxiety.  They  were  not  without 
much  religious  experience,  and  I  believed  could  and 
would  understand  me.  I  gave  them  a  very  brief  out- 
line of  my  experience  in  spiritual  matters,  and  they 
went  away  entirely  satisfied,  ever  after  treating  me 
with  the  utmost  kindness,  and  turned  their  attention 
to  other  parties.  But  this  brief  disclosure  of  my 
secret  life  caused  trouble  and  anxiety  afterwards,  for 
an  effort  was  now  made  to  place  me  in  positions  of 
honor  and  responsibility  in  the  church,  which  was  con- 
trary to  my  wishes  and  my  wife's  judgment. 

Going  back  briefly,  it  is  enough  to  say  that  my 
conflict  with  the  church  was  one  of  the  prime  causes 
of .  a  separation  in  the  Westerly  Yearly  Meeting  of 
Friends'  Church,  and  there  was  a  larger  per  cent,  of 
members  who  separated  in  Mill  Creek  Monthly  and 
Plainfield  Quarterly  -  Meetings  than  any  other,  and 
many  of  the  elders  and  other  officers  left  the  church 
in  a  body.  To  fill  some  of  these  vacant  places  was  what 
my  friends  wished  of  me,  but  I  not  only  steadily  re- 
fused to  accept  such  appointments,  but  began  to  with- 
draw from  active  participation  in  the  business  of  the 
church,  for  it  was  our  conviction  that  it  would  not  do 


OF   ADDISON    COFFIN.  157 

for  me  to  occupy  the  seats  of  those  with  whom  I  had 
been  contending  so  long,  lest  it  should  savor  of  design- 
iiig  ambition  to  displace  them  that  I  might  fill  their 
places.  Though  this  course  gave  some  honest  dissatis- 
faction and  some  severe  censure,  yet  by  being  patient 
and  still  it  all  worked  out  well,  and  time  has  shown  that 
we  were  right,  for  as  the  excitement  attending  and 
following  the  long  contest  died  away,  we  all  began 
to  see  things  with  more  charitable  feelings,  etc.,  and 
now  the  few  who  still  survdve  can  grasp  each  othei*s' 
hands  with  the  warm  shake  of  kindly  forgiveness  and 
heartfelt  gratitude  to  the  Lord  that  we  are  so  minded. 
After  the  close  of  the  war  there  was  a  move- 
ment among  the  Yearly  Meetings  of  Friends  to  or- 
ganize a  general  conference  of  Bible  school  work, 
which  resulted  in  a  bi-ennial  conference  of  delegates 
from  Friends'  schools  w^hich  wished  to  be  represented. 
I  was  very  much  interested  in  the  subject,  and  at- 
tended the  conferences  held  in  Lynn,  New^  Bedford, 
Mass.;  Philadelphia,  Pa.;  Wilmington,  Ohio  and 
Indianapolis,  Indiana,  and  took  excursion  parties  to 
most  of  them.  In  this  way  I  became  acquainted  with 
the  leading  members  of  the  church,  and  sometimes 
had  a  glimpse  at  the  inner  life  of  some  who  thought 
their  real  characters  were  altogether  unknown  to  men, 
and  I  more  than  one  time  incurred  the  displeasure 
of  the  good    people  for  warning  them  against    the 


158  LIFE    AND    TRAVELS 

designs  of  those  whom  they  thought  their  best  friends. 
Among  some  of  my  ''Scraps  and  Fragments"  are 
some  notes  that  would  not  do  to  publish  for  at  least 
another  generation ;  they  would  be  startling  to  all  and 
painful  to  many.  In  addition  to  this,  it  was  a  natural 
consequence  that  I  should  hear  much  of  individual 
history  and  character  discussed,  which  would  often 
fasten  itself  on  my  memoiy.  My  knowledge  of  the 
Bible  gave  me  ability  to  enter  into  many  of  the  debater 
of  the  time  relative  to  the  many  innovations  that  were 
entering  Friends^  Chui-ch,  and  often  it  did  not  take  a 
large  amount  of  discernment  to  predict  coniing  events 
in  certain  meetings  and  individual  ministers. 

It  will  be  impossible  to  me  to  make  'myself  in- 
telligible to'  give  all  the  events  of  life  as  they  oc- 
curred; it  would  mix  up  home  life,  church  matters, 
travel  and  adventures  in  such  a  way  that  it  would  be 
confusing.  It  mil  be  better  to  take  one  line  at  a  time 
and  connect  them  by  incidental  references.  My 
niece  had  married,  and  died  in  1881,  leaving  two  little 
daughters.  My  daughter  had  married  Joseph  John 
Doan  in  1881.  My  mother-in-law,  Eebecca  Hadley, 
had  come  to  live  vdth  us.  She  was  nearly  helpless 
and  nearly  blind,  requiring  much  care.  Brother  Al- 
fred's oldest  daughter,  Luella  C,  had  married  Nathari 
D.  Albertson,  and  come  to  the  farm  to  take  (;are  of 
my  mother.      A  large  number  of  nreees  and  nephews 


OF    ADDISON    COFFIN.  159 

oii'lx)tli  sides  had  married  and  settled  in  various  points. 
With  the  two  grandmothers-  with  us,  it  made  our 
house  headquarters  for  a  large  family  connection, 
and  of  times  there  were  but  few  days  that  we  were 
without  visitors,  who  unavoidably  required  time  and 
attention.  For  many  years  my  large  orchard  yielded 
much  f niit,  and  some"  winters  our  guests  would  con- 
sume half  a  bushel  of  apples  every  day,  and  the  habit 
of  bringing  in  a  basketful  daily  was  as  regular  as 
work;  the  going  and  coining  was  so  great  that  it  re- 
quired a  hoi*se  aiid  cohteyarice  to  be  in  constant  use. 
The  two  grandmothers  being  remarkable  women, 
attracted  many  people,  especially  the  young,  who 
loved  to  hear  them  tell  of  their  early  days,  going 
back  to  1806.  On  one  occasion  a  dozen'  or  more 
young  people  were  present,  and  the  subject  of  amuse- 
ments and  games  was  under  discussion,  cards  included. 
When  there  was  a  pause  in  the  conversation,  my 
mother,  who  was  sitting  near  by,  astonished  the  com- 
pany by  sa^ang  that  in  her  youth  she  was  never  beaten 
at  playing  cards,  and  possibly  could  yet  hold  a  hand. 
Before  they  had  recovered  from  their  astonishment, 
she  bade  my  daughter  bring  out  her  cards;  this  adde<l 
to  the  wonder.  A  pair  of  cotton  cards  with  a  bunch 
of  fine  cotton  lint  was  brought,  and  she  proceeded  to 
card  the  cotton  into  rolls  ready  for  spinning.  The 
interest  and  delight  "was  now  without  bounds;  not  one 


160  LIFE    AND    TRAVELS 

of  the  yonng  people  had  ever  seen  the  ]il:e  before. 
Then,  to  give  a  finishing  touch,  she  said  she  was  a 
noted  musician,  and  would  give  them  a  tiii\r  on  her 
old  musical  instrument.  A  spinning-wheel  was 
brought,  and  she  spun  the  rolls  she  had  carded,  UjaV 
ing  the  old  wheel  hum  as  in  the  lon^'  ago.  That 
company  wall  not  forget  Grandma  (yoffiu'e  <'ard  play- 
ing and  musical  instrument. 

Mother-in-law  Rebecca  Hadley  died  in  1882,  in 
her  ninety -third  year.  She  was  the  hist  of  her  gen- 
ei-ation  on  that  side,  leaving  behind  a  l)lessed.me]nory. 
The  seven  yeairs  that  she  lived  w^ith  u.^  so  taxed  my 
wife's  strength  that  she  began  to  fai]  in  healtli  and 
vigor,  and  in  two  years  an  incurable  can.'er  developed 
in  her  right  breast,  which  continued  to  grow  for  nearly 
two  years,  then,  at  the  urgent  advice  of  all  our  friends, 
we  at  last  consented  to  have  a  surgical  operation  per- 
formed. By  it  all  her  right  breast  was  removed,  leav- 
ing a  wound  extending  back  eight  inches.  It  was  a 
veiw  dangerous  operation,  but  skillfully  performed 
by  experienced  surgeons.  The  wound  healed  slowly, 
but  seemingly  surely,  and  we  began  to  hope  that 
danger  was  passed.  One  of  the  physicians,  however, 
said  in  a  year  it  would  re-appear.  Although  the  sore 
healed,  and  she  was  cheerful  and  apparently  in  rea- 
sonable health,  exactly  at  the  end  of  one  year  it 
showed  unmistakable  signs  of  retuiiiing,  and  in  a  few 


OF    ADDISON    COFFIN.  161 

weeks  was  well-detiiied  and  very  painful ;  and  all  hope 
was  gone.  It  steadily  increased,  and  in  a  year  the 
former  wound  was  an  ulcer  terrible  to  see  and  more 
terrible  to  endure.  She  began  to  waste  away  with 
a  complication  of  diseases.  For  the  last  nine  months 
of  her  life  her  sufferings  were  so  great  that  she  had 
to  t^ike  morphine  nearly  all  the  time,  and  she  was 
so  reduced  and  tender  that  it  was  dithcnilt  to  (^are  for 
her  without  producing  pain,  but  by  constant  atten- 
tion I  learned  to  relieve  her  to  some  extent.  For 
several  months  I  rarely  left  her  bed  but  for  a  few 
minutes,  and  for  many  weeks  did  not  undress  to  sleep. 
In  our  weary,  lonely  watches  by  night,  we  often 
talked  aver  our  lives  and  the  seemingly  near  ap- 
proach of  the  end,  for  my  strength  was  rapidly  fail- 
ing, and  we  had  much  anxiety  lest  I  might  give  out 
before  she  passed  away.  She  often  spoke  of  my  mi- 
raculous survival  of  former  wounds,  and  firmly  be- 
lieved that  I  was  especially  spared  to  take  care  of 
her  in  her  last  days.  And  so  we  waited,  watched 
and  struggled  on,  both  failing  in  slow  but  sure  de- 
cline, until  I  suddenly  gave  out  and  sank  under  com- 
plete exhaustion,  and  was  immediately  attacked  with 
erysipelas.  For  a  while  it  seemed  as  though  the  case 
was  hopeless,  but  Nathan  D.  Albertson  took  me  into 
a  room,  and  did  not  leave  me  for  an  hour  at  a  time 
for  sixteen  days,  and  I  was  saved.     But  lost  to  nearly 


162  LIFE    AND    TRAVPJLS 

all  that  was  transpiring  around,  my  mind  wandered 
i)S  into  distant  lands.  I  seemed  to  visit  countries  and 
cities  that  were  so  real  that  th<'  pictures  have  not 
jet  faded,  and  occasionally  my  clairvoyant  ^dsions 
returned  for  brief,  but  startling  moments.  To  go 
back  to  my  wife,  who  continued  to  sink  after  I  failed, 
though  it  seemed  a  special  Providence  sent  a  nurse 
to  fill  my  place,  and  she  did  not  lack  for  care.  She 
retained  her  consciousness  up  to  the  last  breath,  and 
almost  her  last  words  were:  "Send  some  suitable  per- 
son to  take  care  of  Addison  when  I  pass  away." 
When  I  was  told  she  was  gone  I  seemed  to  under- 
stand, but  alas!  it  was  not  so.  I  was  so  we-ak  and 
exhausted  that  it  was  several  weeks  before  I  could 
fully  comprehend  my  situation  and  loss.  To  neigh- 
bors and  friends  I  seemed  quite  natural,  but  my 
daughter  and  sister-in-law  knew  that  I  was  far  from 
being  out  of  danger,  not  even  capable  of  taking  care 
of  myself,  but  under  their  care  my  strength  of  body 
and  mind  came  slowly  back.  Then  the  sense  of  utter 
loneliness  was  so  ovei^owering  that  it  was  almost 
more  than  my  weakness  could  bear,  but  the  Lord  gave 
me  power  to  still  hope  and  tTust  his  protecting  arm 
amid  my  helplessness.  My  wife  died  March  5th, 
1889,  in  the  HOth  year  of  her  age. 


CHAPTER  SIX. 


Trip  to  the  Pacific  Coast — G^oing  Through  the  Cen- 
tral Route  to  Oregon— Stop  at  Indian  School — 
OceanVojage  to  San  Francisco — Meet  Mj  Son  and 
go  With  Him  to  Carson  City — Return  Through 
Southern  California,  Texas,  Indian  Territory,  etc. 

I  will  go  back  to  the  line  of  travel  again.  Per 
fore  my  wife's  affliction  came  on,  I  took  another 
exploring  trip  to  the  Pacific  coast  to  make  a  more  ex- 
tended examination  of  the  reputed  great  fruit  region. 
Many  horticulturists  requested  me  to  keep  an  eye 
out  for  the  interest  of  horticulture  in  general,  and 
for  individual  trade  in  particular. 

My  rou"le  was  by  way  of  Danville  and  Plooming- 
ton,  Illinois;  Puriington  and  Ottumwa,  Iowa,  to 
Omaha,  Nebraska.  From  there  over  the  Union  Pa- 
cific up  Platte  Valley.  Some  years  before  Dr.  Allen 
Furnas,  an  old  friend  and  neighbor,  and  I  had  an 
iiivitatioii  to  visit  Nebraska  State  Fair,  which  we  did, 
and  after  its  close  looked  around  over  the  new  stat^. 

(163) 


164  LIFE    AND    TRAVELS 

We  went  to  Kearney  Junction,  as  far  as  settlements 
extended;  this  gave  a  tolerably  clear  idea  of  the  rich 
agricultural  state.  Beyond  Kearney  Junction  all  was 
new,  and  from  there  I  began  taking  permanent  mental 
pictures  of  the  wide  expanse  of  luxuriant  prairie 
grass  that  filled  the  river  valley  and  crowned  the 
rolling  hill,  with  large  herds  of  cattle  feeding  on  the 
hillside,  with  the  typical  cowboy  in  charge,  for  he 
was  one  of  the  distinctive  characters  of  American 
life  at  that  time,  and  no  American  character  will 
sooner  disappear,  and  when  gone  be  so  little  under- 
stood. 

^Tien  the  Indians  of  our  vast  plains  were  finally 
subdued  and  placed  on  reservations,  there  were  many 
millions  of  acres  of  pasture  land  made  accessible,  and 
soon  great  numbers  of  cattle  took  the  place  of  the 
rapidly-disappearing  buffalo;  and  hardy,  brave,  ad- 
venturous men  were  needed  to  take  charge  of  the 
herds  that  spread  out  over  the  expanse.  Sometimes 
a  herdsman  (cowlwy)  would  take  his  herd  of  cattle 
or  sheep  hundreds  of  miles  from  the  frontier,  and  be 
away  from  humanity  for  months,  leading  a  terribly 
lonely  life.  As  might  be  expected,  the  isolation  from 
home,  and  surrounded  with  privation  and  danger, 
often  encountering  the  ferocious  wolf  and  more-to-be- 
dreaded  grizzly  bear,  and  still  oftener  wandering  cat- 
tle thieves  and  freebooters,  with  whom  he  had  many 


OF    ADDISON    COFFiN.  165 

deadly  coiifiicts,  stamped  upon  his  character  peculiar 
traits  not  found  elsewhere.  l>ut  their  lives  were  not 
wholly  devoid  of  compensating  elements.  Besides 
the  large  gains  in  business,  they  soon  became  a  law 
unto  themselves,  and  for  a  few  years,  during  their 
highest  glory,  could  defy  the  outside  world.  Many 
times  they  set  aside  state  laws  in  land  claims,  and  were 
not  easily  controlled;  Init  eventually  the  rapid  ad- 
vance of  settlements  encroached  on  their  domain,  aiid 
the  small  farmers  with  barbed  ware  fence,  accom- 
plished more  and  much  faster  than  the  appeals  to  state 
law  or  occasional  collisions  and  loss  of  life.  But  the 
cowboy,  like  the  Indian  and  the  buffalo,  is  a  thing  of 
,  the  past,  and  will  return  no  more. 

This  boundless  expanse  of  grass  continued  sev- 
eral hundred  miles  up  the  Platte  River  valley  into  the 
Colorado,  but  before  reaching  the  latter  it  was  un- 
mistakably evident  on  every  side  that  we  were  out 
of  the  rain  belt,  and  into  the  great  in-igation 
region.  Stunted  sage  brush  and  sand  burs  appeared ; 
the  ever-present  red  ants,  with  their  little  mounds  of 
siand  thrown  up,  were  busy  everywhere.  The  beau- 
tiful green  was  gone,  and  as  far  as  one  could  see  it 
was  brown  and  sear,  gi^dng  things  a  look  of  sad 
sterility. 

The  town  of  Greely  and  its  adjoining  settle- 
ment was  off  the  main  I'nion  Pacific  line,  but  I  was 

11 


166  LIFE    AND    TRAVELS 

anxious  to  see  the  result  of  irrigation,  as  that  experi- 
ment was  claimed  to  be  a  grand  success,  so  I  went 
that  waj  and  stopped  for  a  time  to  see  and  study  for 
myself.     Xever  was  I  more  surprised  and  pleased 
with  the  result.     I  at  once  became  enthusiastic  over 
the  grand  future  for  all  our  vast  tracts  of  arid,  desert 
region,  for  as  a  consequence  of  the  trial  at  Greely  I 
saw  the  triumph  of  coming  ages,  and  J  have  not  yet 
lost  my  enthusiasm.      From  Greely  a  short  run  wds 
made  to  Denver,  which  had  become  celebrated  by  its 
proximity  to  Pike's  Peak  and  the  famous  gold  belt 
near  by,    but  it   was  like   other  young,   pretentious 
•cities — had  much  to  learn  and  some  things  to  iiidearn. 
Prom  Denver  we  went  north  to  the  main  line,  and 
soon    entered    the    Rocky    Mountain    range.      From 
there  it  was  uj)  grade    through    constantly    varying 
mountain  scenery.      Sometime?^  it  was. of  surpassing 
beauty,  opening  out  to  view  as  we  turned  some  great 
spur  on  the  mountain  side,  showing  valleys  and  hills 
blended  in  a  vast  panorama  that  is  not  easily  forgotten, 
^lany  people,  as  they  ascend  the  Great  Di\'ide, 
are  almost  exhausted  by  the  raritied  moiuitain  air.      I 
never  felt  any  unpleasant  sensation,  but  on  the  con- 
trary have  a  sense  of  exhilaration  and  buoyancy  not 
felt  in  plain  or  valley.      At  the  summit,  in  Shennan^s 
Pass,  there  is  a  large  pyramidal  monument,   which 
marks  the  highest  grade  in  the  range.     This  point  is 


OF    ADDISON    COFFIN.  167 

dreaded  by  people  with  weak  lungs.  Many  men  tried 
to  run  the  length  of  the  train,  but  few  could  do  it 
without  being  out  of  breath.  On  account  of  the 
elevation  the  stop  is  always  short  at  that  point.  The 
scene  in  some  directions  is  grand,  but  in  othei's  it  is 
like  a  gentle,  rolling  countrs-.  We  were  on  the  gi*eat 
summit  level,  and  were  hardly  conscious  of  the  regu- 
lar, but  rapid,  descent  as  we  went  down  into  the  great 
treeless  region  that  lies  between  the  Rocky  and  Sierra 
Xevada  mountains. 

Descending  westward,  we  reached  the  valleys  of 
the  head  streams  of  the  North  Platte.  The  principal 
of  these  are  Laramie  and  Medicine  Bow  rivers,  which 
liead  in  the  ^N'orth  Park,  and  cross  the  great  Laramie 
plains,  and  finally  emerge  from  the  mountains  and 
start  for  their  long  journey  to  the  Missouri.  AIT  this 
A^ast  pasture  land  was  occupied  by  lai*ge  herds  of  cat- 
tle, which  presented  an  impressive  view  when  seen 
covering:  the  distant  hills  and  the  fiel4  glass  revealed 
the  ever-present  cowboy,  sometimes  single,  and  again 
two  and  three  together,  but  otherwise  alone  amid  the 
wide  expanse. 

A  section  boss  on  the  road  had  laid  by  some 
money  and  invested  in  a  small  lot  of  cattle  and  put 
them  in  charge  of  a  15-year-old  son,  who  delighted 
in  the  wild  life.  The  little  herd  had  now  grown  to 
2,000,  and  the  boy  had  become  a  man.     That  morning 


168  LIFE    AND    TRAVELS 

the  boss  was  aboard  the  train,  going  to  meet  his  son 
at  a  station  on  ahead.  As  we  neared  the  place  the 
engineer  blew  a  tattoo  on  his  whistle.  The  boss 
sprang  to  his  feet,  saying,  ''Charlie  is  coming!"  and 
sure  enough,  looking  out  to  the  north,  a  rider  was 
seen  coming  across  the  plain  at  full  speed,  waving  his 
cap  in  answer  to  the  salute.  When  he  came  up  his 
face  was  all  aglow  with  the  excitement  of  a  twenty- 
mile  ride  to  meet  the  train.  He  was  greeted  with 
hearty  cheers  by  the  trainmen,  and  the  father  was 
proud  of  his  son,  a  noble  specimen  of  manhood  and 
a  model  cowboy.  From  that  boss  and  father  I  learned 
much  of  the  every  day  life  of  cattle  herding,  its  dan- 
ger, losses  ^nd  profits. 

As  we  passed  on  westward  across  the  rolling- 
plains,  among  rough,  rocky  hills,  we  began  to  realize 
that  we  were  in  the  great  summit  level  of  the  conti- 
nent, the  great,  central  fountain  of  nearly  all  our  large 
rivers.  Soon  we  reached  the  wonderful  Green  River 
valley,  the  headwaters  of  the  Colorado  of  the  west. 
Here  we  found  a  combination  of  strong  contradictory 
phenomena.  Taking  its  rise  in  the  same  central  up- 
land, amid  perpetual  snow,  yet  its  waters  for  many 
miles  are  so  alkaline  and  bitter  that  it  is  not  fit  to 
drink  without  boiling;  even  the  pasture  lands  are  use- 
less. The  grass  is  so  bitter  that  cattle  cannot  live 
on  it;  even  the  wild  deer  and  buffalo  never  frequent 


OF   ADDISON    COFFIN.  1(^9 

this  region.  Tliere  is  one  celebrated  spring  or  large 
fountain  that  yields  the  most  noisome  and  intensely 
aend  water  known.  Yet  it  is  a  wonderful  country; 
behind  us  was  the  headwater  of  the  Platte  river,  to 
the  southeast  the  Arkansas,  to  the  northeast  and  north 
is  the  head  of  the  Yellowstone  and  Snake  (Columl)ia), 
and  we  are  on  the  Colorado,  while  150  miles  westward 
is  the  eastern  rim  of  the  Great  Salt  Lake  basin;  and 
greatest  of  all,  250  miles  north,  is  Yellowstone  Park, 
the  wonder  of  the  world. 

At  Granger  we  left  the  main  Union  Pacific  line 
and  soon  entered  the  Bear  river  country,  where  the 
river  is  running  north,  and  in  a  short  time  came  tx) 
one  of  the  characteristics  of  this  strange,   volcanic 
region.      Bear  river  originally  was  a  branch  of  Snake 
river,   but  some   local   convulsion   has  thrown   up   a 
short  range  of  mountains  right  across  its  course,  form- 
ing Bear  Lake,  and  turning  the  river  back  into  the 
great  basin  and  emptying  it  into  Salt  Lake.     This  is 
only  one  of  many  such  changes  that  have  been  wrought 
by  volcanic  action,  and  to  an  eye  open  to  such  things, 
this  whole  great,  central  treeless  territory  is  full  of  in- 
terest; for  on  every  side  is  evidence  of  comparatively 
fearful  volcanic  activity,  and  one  looking  for  the  won- 
derful cannot  afford  to  travel  during  the  night. 

I  turned  aside  at  Pocatello,  and  went  north  to 
Idaho  Falls  to  .see  that  region  then  just  opened  to 


170  LIFE    AND    TRAVELS 

settlement,  and  which  was  supposed  to  be  a  place  of 
mnch  promise.  Some  days  were  spent  in  tramping 
over  the  valley,  among  sage  brush  and  numerous 
jack  rabbits.  After  seeing  the  soil  and  the  inexhaust- 
ible supply  of  water  in  Snake  river,  it  was  easy  to  pre- 
dict the  future  of  that  valley,  for  it  was  a  marvel  of 
fertility  and  productiveness.  Upon  returning  to  Po- 
catello  the  journey  was  resumed  down  Snake  River 
valley  and  across  the  wide  plain.  To  the  average 
passenger  the  suiTOundings  were  dreary,  desolate  and 
repulsive ;  but  not  so  ^\^th  me,  for  there  before  me, 
Avritten  in  raised  stone,  was  the  history  of  the  coun- 
try. In  many  places  there  is  not  an  acre  of  surface 
but  has  a  half  dozen  craters  from  four  to  twenty  feet 
in  diameter,  and  from  three  to  fifteen  feet  high.. 
Those  craters  were  formed  when  the  great  lake  of 
melted  matter  was  cooling  and  crusting  over.  ^Then 
the  crust  was  the  consistency  of  baker's  dough,  great 
bubbles  of  steam  would  escape  through  the  plastic 
covering,  which  left  the  opening  only  partially  closed, 
and  it  soon  hardened  into  stone,  and  there  they  stand 
simple  and  plain  as  a  printed  page.  The  low  ranges 
of  adjacent  mountains  show  that  they  have  first  been 
formed,  of  this  plastic  material,  rolled  and  twisted  into 
great  fr»lds,  then  subsequently  shivered  and  shattered 
by  internal  convulsions,  accompanied  by  volcanic  fire 
that  scorchefl  and  blackened  the  broken  rocks. 


OF    ADDISON    COFFIN.  171 

Every  mile  of  the  joiiraey  across  the  plain  and 
down  the  valley  was  full  of  interest,  for  on  every  side 
was  evidence  that  we  were  in  the  midst  of  phenomena 
not  found  elsewhere,  and  peculiar  to  this  part  of  the 
continent  and  the  world,  so  far  as  known  to  mo<lem 
scientists  and  geologists. 

The  niin<l  can  in  time  grow  weary  of  remember- 
ing and  storing  away,  even  though  it  be  things  both 
sublime  and  beautiful  with  which  it  is  dealing.  So 
it  was  a  relief  to  reach  the  wild  region  of  the  Owyhee 
river,  past  the  railroad  junction  of  the  theii  noisy, 
boasting,  gambling  little  place  knowTi  as  Boise  City, 
which,  though  of  ill-repute,  had  a  future  before  it 
that  time  alone  could  develop.  At  Huntington  we 
were  in  the  midst  of  one  of  the  wild,  incomprehen- 
sible territories.  The  mountains  seemed  to  have  been 
thrown  up  by  contending  crosg  currents  of  volcanic 
energy.  In  some  places  two  of  these  contending 
forces  seem  to  have  met  and  made  chop  sea  of  the 
mountains  and  hills.  It  is  a  wild,  interesting  ride 
through  the  Seven  Devils  and  Blue  Mountain  ranges, 
with  every  conceivable  combination  of  dark  ravines, 
dizzy  heights  and  secluded  valleys;  a  perfect  medley 
of  romantic  scenery. 

At, Pendleton  we  reached  the  celebrate^l  valley 
of  the  Columl)ia  river,  and  at  Umatilla  we  came  to  the 
rjver  itself.      Of  this  stream  it  mav  be  said,  there  are 


172  LIFE    AND    TRAVELS 

few  more  interesting  in  the  world,  and  not  one  that 
drains  such  a  wonderful  country.  It  is  the  outlet  for 
the  waters  of  the  great  internal  empire,  as  it  is  called, 
all  of  Idaho,  the  western  part  of  Montana,  part  of 
British  Columbia,  Oregon  and  Washington.  Within 
this  area  every  form  of  volcanic  force  has  been  in 
active  operation,  producing  results  not  found  else- 
where, and  not  excelled  in  the  terrible,  sublime  and 
beautiful. 

From  Umatilla  the  railroad  follows  the  river; 
and  it  is  in  sight  much  of  the  time,  and  there  is  no 
part  of  the  distance  but  what  is  full  of  beauty,  with 
ever  changing  views  and  sublime  grouping  of  moun- 
tains as  a  background.  There  is  one  point  that  no  tour- 
ist should  fail  to  see,  or  to  be  awake  and  on  the  look- 
out for.  At  a  bend  in  the  river  as  we  neared  the 
Cascade  range  of  mountains,  Mt.  Hood  suddenly 
came  into  view,  standing  high  above  all  the  interven- 
ing summits,  clothed  with  perpetual  snow,  which 
sparkled  in  the  morning  sunlight  like  a  great  phos- 
phorescent cone  of  fire.  It  bursts  upon  one  so  un- 
expectedly and  is  so  nmch  like  a  meteor  flash,  that 
the  vision  fixes  itself  on  the  memory  so  deeply  that 
few  of  the  many  who  thus  see  it  will  ever  forget  it. 

From  the  moment  we  caught  sight  of  Mt.  Hood 
the  interest  increased,  for  on  every  side  we  saw  evi- 
dence of  the  mighty  convulsions  that  have  shaken 


OF    ADDISON    COFFIN.  173 

this  whole  region  in  the  past.  We  now  travelled 
through  a  country  which  is  the  richest  in  fossil  de- 
posits of  pre-historic  times  of  any  place  in  the  world. 
This  is  especially  the  case  up  the  valley  of  the  John 
Day  river,  which  comes  in  from  the  south  and  the 
plains  of  Des  Chutes  river.  The  beds  of  the  streams, 
the  banks  and  bluifs,  the  foot-hills  and  sometimes  the 
mountain  sides,  abound  in  petrifactions  of  such  a  char- 
acter as  to  make  a  fossil  collector  go  into  ecstasies 
over  the  evidences  of  former  life  in  this  now  com- 
paratively desolate  place. 

Pi;obably  there  are  few^  parts  of  the  country 
which  have  a  greater  interest  to  the  geologist,  or  intel- 
ligent farmer,  than  the  Grand  Dalles,  the  great  rapids 
and  falls  of  the  Columbia  river  wdiere  it  makes  its 
passage  through  the  Cascade  range  of  mountains. 
For  unknown  ages  the  river  has  been  cutting  its  way 
through  the  range.  When  it  first  began  it  was  four 
or  five  thousand  feet  above  its  present  level,  and  a 
great  inland  sea  covered  the  area  of  the  internal 
empire. 

It  is  wonderful  to  behold  how  the  work  has 
slowly  progressed  in  wearing  away  the  rock.  In 
places  there  have  been  perpendicular  falls  of  a  thous- 
and feet,  ever  var\dng  and  changing  until  it  is  now 
confined  at  The  Dalles  proper,  to  a  channel  of  a 
few  hundre<i    feet  wide,   through   which   the    water 


174  LIFE    AND    TRAVELS 

rushes  at  liglitniug  speed.  No  invention  of  man  can 
ever  navigate  those  fearful  rapids.  Like  the  Xiagara 
river,  it  is  slowly  deepening  the  gorge  and  working  up 
stream,  but  it  has  no  lake  to  drain ;  its  labor  is  done  in 
that  line.  The  scene  at  Harper's  Ferry  will  give  a 
faint  ide^a  of  the  higher  and  grander  scene  at  the 
passage  of  the  Columbia  through  the  Cascade  range. 
It  is  an  invariable  rule  that  things  ai^e  on  a  wider 
and  grander  scale  as  we  go  west  across  the  continent. 
The  plains  are  wider,  the  mountains  more  rugged 
and  higher,  the  volcanic  energy  has  been  greater,  the 
natural  wonders  more  astonishing,  and  the  ancient  life 
has  been  more  gigantic  and  abundant.  The  growth 
of  the  trees  in  the  past,  as  well  as  in  the  present,  is  as- 
tonishing, and  they  are  taller  and  larger  than  any 
other  land;  the  deposits  of  gold  are  more  abundant, 
and  the  future  of  human  developmeiat  more  ideal  and 
more  assured. 

It  was  not  only  these  sublime  scenes  that  gave 
me  an  absorbing  and  thnlling  interest  in  all  that 
passed,  but  I  was  full  of  a  silent  and  deep  feeling  of 
triumph  in  my  heart,  that  I  had  at  last  reached  the 
ideal  land  of  my  early  life.  Forty  years  before^ 
when  I  left  my  Carolina  home,  Oregon  was  to  be  the 
ultimate  resting  place,  and  thiM>ugh  all  the  interven- 
ing veal's  the  hope  of  one  day  reacliing  there  had 
never  left  me:  and  now  I  felt  a  gk>w  of  exultation  and 


OF    ADDISON    COFFIN.  175 

thankfulness  that  I  had  at  last  realized  my  life  dream, 
and  a&  the  train  whirled  past  and  through  the  ever- 
changing  scenes,  down  the  magnificent  river,  my  joy 
can  better  be  imagined  than  expressed.  The  impulse 
^vithin  was  to  g-ive  erne  long,  continuous  shout  of 
victory. 

In  this  overland  trip  there  were  three  other  ex- 
plorers who,  in  like  manner,  were  aliA'e  to  all  that 
parsed.  One  was  an  enthusiast  on  the  bee  culture; 
then  there  was  the  man  who  dealt  in  blooded  horses, 
and  a  shrewd  real  estate  man.  When  w^e  landed  at 
Portland  all  were  full  to  overflowing  and  eager  to 
s.ee  the  promised  land,  but  before  parting  we  agreed 
to  meet  again  and  compare  notes.  The  man  inter- 
ested in  bees  W' ent  up  and  over  the  Coast  range  to  the 
west  to  the  honey  belt;  the  horse  dealer  went  into 
ecstasies  over  the  splendid  hor&e§  seen  in  Portland,  and 
from  there  he  went  up  the  gTand  Willamette  Valley; 
the  real  estate  man  became  incog,  with  eyes  and  ears 
open,  while  I  spread  out  up  the  valley,  and  among- 
the  fo<>thills  and  immense  forests.  I  had.  several 
objective  points  and  purj)0ses,  one  of  which  was  the 
government  Indian  school,  five  miles  north  of  Salem, 
the  capital,  where  I  found  my  old  friend,  W.  F. 
Harvey,  and  my  young  cousin,  William  Y.  Coffin, 
the  former  superintending  physician,  the  latter  super- 
intendent in  charge  of  the.  school.     A  few  days  were 


176  LIFE    AND    TRAVELS 

Spent  at  the  seli<X)I,  where  I  had  an  opportunity  of 
seeing  and  observing  twenty-two  different  types  of 
native  Indians,  including  two  from  Alaska. 

The  school  was  located  in  a  dense  forest,  which 
the  Indian  boys  were  cutting  down  and  burning.  I 
was  struck  with  the  size  of  one  tree  they  cut,  and 
measured  it  acroes  the  stump  as  well  as  its  length. 
It  was  14  feet  in  diameter  and  220  feet  long.  It  was 
the  largest  tree  in  the  clearing,  but  a  few  hundred 
jards  south  I  found  several  still  larger  and  taller. 
To  the  east  of  the  school,  and  across  the  railroad,  >vas 
a  magnificent  forest  of  giant  trees  that  looked  as 
though  it  would  be  a  sin  to  destroy  for  any  purpose 
or  under  any  pretense. 

While  at  the  sch(X>l  a  telegram  was  telephoned 
from  Salem  for  me  from  my  son  in  Carson,  Xevada, 
inquiring  whether  I  was  in  that  part  of  the  world, 
l^pon  replying,  another  came  asking  when  I  could 
meet  him  at  the  Lick  House,  San  Francisco.  The 
time  tables  of  the  sailing  of  steamei*s  was  consulted, 
and  a  date  fixed  for  me  to  sail  from  Portland.  This 
shoii)ened  my  stay  in  Oregon  a  few  days,  but  I  was 
the  more  active  in  exploring.  At  Salem  the  State 
Fair  was  in  full  tide,  where  all  kinds  of  possible,  and 
a  few  impossible,  productions  were  on  exhibition;  but 
among  the  many  gi-and  things  the  display  of  fruit 
was  the  finest  I  had  ever  seen,  apples,  pears,  cherries, 


OF    ADDJSON    COFFIN.  177 

])niii('?^,  }>hmiv^,  (}innc'es  and  hardy  varieties  of  small 
fruits.  My  knowledge  of  fruit  told  me  at  once  that 
Oregon  was  destined  to  lead  the  world  in  these  va- 
rieties, and  subsequent  results  have  proved  it. 

AVhile  at  Salem  1  saw  a  cowbov  pen-form  a  feat  of 
eourag-e  and  skill  that  was  wonderful.  Two  very 
large  and  poAverful  horses  harnessed  to  an  express 
wagon  took  fright,  and  dashed  off  at  breakneck  speed, 
and  the  driver  was  powerless  to  do  anything.  The 
cowboy  was  sitting  on  his  small,  wiry  horse,  looking 
at  a  train  of  cars  coming  in.  His  attention  w^as  called 
to  the  runaway  team  by  the  shouting.  He  looked 
for  a  moment,  took  in  the  situation,  then  dashed  after 
them  like  a  flash  and  was  soon  beside  the  off  horse, 
which  he  caught  by  the  bridle  and  jerked  its  head 
up  and  back.  At  the  same  time  he  swung  about  four 
feet  of  the  end  of  his  lanat  like  a  whip  lash  across 
the  nose  of  the  other  horse.  In  thirty  or  forty  steps 
he  brought  them  to  a  dead  halt,  then  briefly  said  to 
the  excited  driver,  ^'Xow  you  haye  them,"  and  can- 
tered slowly  back  to  his  former  position.  But  it  is 
due  his  intelligent  horse  to  say  of  it  that  it  acted 
its  part  as  though  it  understood  just  what  must  be 
done  and  how  to  do  it.  While  the  rider's  hands  were 
both  employed  with  the  horses,  it  kept  its  place, 
and  at  the  right  moment  braced  itself  for  the  flnal 


178  LIFE    AND    TRAVELS 

tug  that  brought  them  around.  The  sagacity  of  those 
trained  horses  is  marvelous. 

Another  example  of  a  cowboy  and  his  horse. 
A  large,  stamj^eding  steer  had  been  lassoed,  but  in 
the  first  frantic  stiTiggle  it  threw  the  horse  and  rider 
in  the  road.  The  man  was  somewhat  shaken  up,  but 
the  horse  sprang  to  its  feet,  tightened  the  lasso,  and 
kept  the  infuriated  animal  in  the  road,  and  had  taken 
it  successfully  nearly  a  mile  before  over-taken  by 
its  master.  Sometimes  the  steer  would  make  a  des- 
perate lunge  and  try  to  gore  the  horse,  but  it  always 
dashed  off  in  the.  right  direction,  keeping  the  lasso 
taut,  and  often  gaining  a  hundred  yards  of  headway 
by  this  maneuver.  Every  effort  of  the  steer  to  break 
away  was  promptly  and  intelligently  thwarted.  No 
man  could  have  done  better.  The  lasso  was  firmly 
fastened  to  the  saddle,  which  was  as  firmly  fastened 
to  the  horse.  In  many  instances  these  horses  have 
displayed  as  much  discernment  as  the  best  shepherd 
dog  in  herding  cattle  and  sheep. 

The  time  to  leave  Oregon  was  so  arranged  that 
I  could  meet  my  fellow-explorers  at  Portland,  and 
we  had  a  very  interesting  meeting.  The  informa- 
tion received  and  given  was  invaluable.  It  was  al- 
most like  an  actual  experience,  and  each  felt  that  it 
was  reliable.  Xone  were  so  completely  enthused  as 
the  bee  culturist ;  he  had  seen  whole  car  loads  of  honey 


OF    ADDISON    COFFIN.  179 

shipped  bv  one  iiiaii;  it  was  something  ahnost  beyond 
belief,  but  he  was  henceforth  to  be  an  Oregon  bee 
keeper,  llie  horse  dealer  had  selected  the  Kogue 
River  valley  for  a  blooded  horse  farm.  The  real  estate 
man  saw  what  has  since  come  to  ])ass — the  growth 
of  East  Portland  and  the  fortunes  to  be  thus  gained — 
and  he  is  now  happy  at  the  thought  of  his  foresight. 
While  I  related  all  that  had  been  seen  and  done,  l)ut 
withheld  judgment  until  1  had  seen  more,  though 
agreeing  with  the  convictions  and  conclusions  of  my 
friends. 

I  took  steamer  at  Portland  for  San  Francisco, 
the  overland  railroad  not  being  completed  at  that  time. 
In  crossing  the  bar  at  the  mouth  of  the  river  a  strong 
mnd  was  blowing,  making  a  chop  sea,  which  caused 
the  steamer  to  lay  off  from  land  and  run  well  out  to 
sea.  Though  rough,  there  was  nothing  sensational 
about  the  voyage,  excepting  to  those  who  had  genuine 
sea  sickness.  To  them  there  were  many  sensational 
periods,  and  probably  memories  not  yet  gone.  One 
day  a  school  of  whales,  a  dozen  or  more,  passed  us. 
One  large  fellow  rose  ^\nthin  fifty  feet  of  the  ship 
and  spouted  his  two  jets  of  water  high  in  the  air;  then 
laid  almost  still  a  minute  or  more,  taking  in  his  long 
breath  of  fresh  air;  then,  with  a  sudden,  rolling  plunge 
was  out  of  sight.  Although  the  steamer  was  making 
good  speed  and  going  the  same  way,  the  .whales  soon 


180  LIFE    AND    TRAVELS 

disappeared  in  the  distance  ahead,  the  last  jets  of 
water,  as  seen  through  the  glass,  not  rising  but  six  to 
ten  feet  above  the  waves. 

The  approach  to  the  Golden  Gate  was  full  of 
interest  aside  from  the  natural  scenery  and  wonderful 
topographical  surroundings.  In  one  of  my  aerial 
dreams,  or  clairvoyant  ^dsions,  I  had  seemed  to  stand 
with  Milton  Hadley  on  a  hill  and  look  out  to  sea 
through  the  Golden  Gate  into  the  past  years;  hence 
I  was  anxious  to  see  all  the  islands  and  hilltops  that 
surrounded  the  bay.  ^^^len  I  reached  the  landing, 
my  son,  and  his  wife  met  me  at  the  gangwav  and  we 
had  a  happy  meeting,  for  it  had  been  several  years 
since  he  had  gone  west,  and  I  was  channed  and  de- 
lighted to  meet  his  beautiful  young  wife.  She  was 
one  of  the  few  to  whom  the  best  of  photographs  do 
not  do  justice. 

For  a  few  days  my  son  showed  me  the  wonders 
of  the  city  and  its  surroundings.  One  of  ihe  points 
which  engaged  our  attention  was  the  Cliff  House, 
across  the  neck  of  the  coast,  where  hundreds  of  bark- 
ing seals  occupied  a  group  of  rocks  rising  out  of  the 
water  near  shore.  They  keep  up  a  constant  noise  very 
much  like  fox  hounds  on  a  hot  trail.  These  seals  are 
protected  by  the  government,  and  are  about  all  that 
have  escaped  destruction.  We  next  viewed  the  scene 
of  the  sand  lot  speculation.     Twenty-five    or    thirty 


OF    ADDISON    COFFIN.  181 

vears  ago  the  city  undertook —  wiuit  was  looked  ii}n;ii 
as  one  of  the  most  stupendous  humbugs  of  the  time — 
to  remove  som€  sand  hills  ai.d  Jill  up  a  part  of  the  bav. 
The  project  entered  into  local  and  state  politics,  and 
was  long  drawn  out  and  violent;  but  the  sand  hills 
were  plucked  up  and  cast  into  the  spot  selected,  and 
now  the  bay  is  filled.  The  place  where  the  sand  hills 
stood  is  now  the  center  of  business,  and  the  most 
valuable  property  in  the  city. 

The  whole  place  was  interesting  to  me,  for  my 
brother-in-law,  Milton  Hadley,  was  one  of  the  leaders 
in  the  rebellion  in  the  early  days,  when  honest  people 
arose  in  arms  to  expel  the  blacklegs,  swindlers  and 
robbei-s  who  had  control  of  the  city  and  state;  but  this 
has  gone  into  history  and  need  not  be  repeated.  It 
was  interesting  to  see  the  place  where  the  citizens 
built  the  gunny-bag  fort  and  established  their  head- 
quarters, tried,  condemned  and  hanged  the  robbers. 

San  Francisco  is  one  of  the  two  wonderful  cities 
of  the  world  where  two  or  more  people  from  every 
civilized  nation  can  meet  and  talk  together;  the  cli- 
mate is  not  too  cold  for  those  from  the  tropics,  nor 
too  warm  for  those  from  the  poles.  Cairo,  in  Egypt, 
is  the  other  city. 

We  next  went  to  Carson  City,  Nevada,  my  son^s 

home,   where   I  spent  some  weeks  among  the  wild 

mountains.     I  made  a  trip  by  Tucker  to  and  around 

Lake  Zahoe,  one  of  the  strange  lake  phenomena  not 

^     12 


182  LIFE    A>sD    TRAVELS 

easily  explained.  It  is  6,200  feet  above  the  sea  level, 
amid  snow  and  ice;  yet  its  waters  never  freeze,  no 
matter  liow  cold  the  atmosphere.  It  is  nearly  2,000 
feet  deep  aiid  surrounded  by  mountain  peaks,  and 
believed  by  many  to  be  the  extinct  crater  and  outlet 
to  a  vast  volcanic  area,  though  twenty  miles  long  and 
twelve  wide. 

Xear  Carson  City  is  another  remarkable  object 
not  surpassed  in  any  corner  of  the  eai'th.  It  is  the 
footprints  of  men,  animals  and  birds  found  in  a  solid 
rock  formation,,  when  excavating  in  the  yard  of  the 
State  piison.  When  I  first  saw  these  imprints  of  a 
past  geologic  age  it  filled  me  \^'i-:h  inexpressible  aston- 
ishment, for  here  were  traces  of  beings  who  had  existed 
long,  long  before  the  fossil  forms  on  John  Day  river 
had  seen  the  light.  They  were  back  of  the  prison 
buildings,  where  the  heavy  sandstone  rises  in  a  hill 
60  to  100  feet  high.  An  acre  or  more  had  been  ex- 
cavated for  building  stone  twenty  to  thirty  feet  at 
the  east,  south  and  west  walls.  As  thej  progressed 
the  layers  of  stone  varied  in  thickness  from  two  to  six 
feet.  At  the  depth  mentioned  a  layer  was  uncovered 
showing  footprints  of  huge  elephants,  giant  men,  in- 
numerable birds,  deer,  horses,  dogs  or  wolves,  a  huge 
elk,  a  gigantic  bird,  and  other  wholly  unknown  ani- 
mals. The  tracks  had  been  made  in  a  stiff  clay,  about 
six  inches  deep;  then  it  hardened  and  had  been  covered 


OF    ADDISON    COFFIN.  183 

bv  a  deposit  of  what  the  rock  was  formed,  thus  pre- 
serving the  foot  marks  in  perfect  condition,  and  when 
the  layer  above  was  quarried  there  was  the  mold  on 
the  under  side.  The  elephant's  tracks  w^ere  tw^enty- 
t wo  inches  in  diameter;  the  men  eighteen  inches  long, 
eight  inches  wide  at  toe^  and  six  at  heel;  the  other 
impressions  of  known  animals  were  similar  to  those 
of  the  present  day.  Under  this  formation,  which  was 
two  feet  thick,  the  same  kind  of  marks  were  found 
on  the  stratmn  below,  but  double  in  quantity.  In 
one  case  a  child  had  been  led  by  the  parent,  leaving 
perfect  footprints.  The  tracks  are  scattered  thickly 
over  the  space.  The  animals  seemed  to  have  crossed, 
and  recrossed  in  every  direction.  Then  men,  or 
people,  appeared  to  have  walked  singly  or  in  groups. 
Near  the  west  side  of  the  yard  an  elephant  had  died 
and  left  an  outline  of  its  form,  and  several  frag- 
ments of  its  tusk  were  left  :K'ar  by.  It-:-  mate  li'.id  'p- 
parently,  from  the  marks,  remained  by  it  lor  some 
time,  helping.  Sixteen  horses  had  gone  by  in  a  com- 
pany, all  close  together  and  in  a  direct  line;  they 
appear  to  have  been  the  last  to  pass.  One  unknown 
animal  left  a  roundish  track  nearly  eight  inches  in 
diameter,  wholly  different  from  all  the  others,  and 
from  anything  now  living  or  among  fossil  remains  yet 
discovered. 

These  footprints  open  up  a  new  chapter  to  geolo- 


184  LIFE    AND    TRAVELS 

gists,  and  reveal  the  existericc  of  animals  in  a  time 
heretofore  unknown,  and  the  presence  of  man  in 
an  age  and  under  circumstances  inexplicable.  I  was 
so  interested  in  this  discovery  that  I  charged  my  mem- 
ory with  the  whole  picture  so  it  would  not  fade,  and 
on  amving  at  home  drew  a  chart  and  had  it  engraved 
and  printed.  It  was  fortunate  T  did  so,  for  when  I 
last  visited  the  prison  yard,  in  1(S93,  it  had  heen 
dragged  over  with  heavy  stones,  carts  and  wagons, 
and  all  marks  were  destroyed  excepting  a  few  near 
the  east  wall  and  close  to  what  was  then  the  south- 
west corner.  The  time  may  come  when  it  \vi\\  be  a 
good  thing  that  I  inherited  a  fine  memory  and  pre- 
served a  chart  of  these  impressions. 

Twenty  miles  north  of  Carson  City  is  Steam Ix^at 
hill,  a  miniature  Yellowstone  Park.  Covering  a 
space  of  eighty  or  one  hundred  acres  of  foot  hills, 
there  is  a  display  of  small  geysers,  boiling  pools  of 
water,  steam  jets  shooting  into  the  air;  lon^',  irregular, 
ragged  fissures,  from  which  sulphurous  and  poison- 
ous gases  escape,  with  low,  rumbling  noises  from  far 
below,  so  that  the  hill  trembles.  Streams  of  boiling 
water  issue  from  fantastically-shaped  fountains,  and 
deposit  various  colored  and  different  kirxls  of  sediuierit 
down  the  side  of  the  hill.  In  many  places  lime  many 
feet  deep  has  been  found,  with  a  curious  mingling  of 
other  deposits.     Steamboat  Hill-  is  the  extreme  south- 


OF   ADDISON    COFFIN.  185 

west  end  of  the  last  lake  of  fire,  of  which  Norris  hmn, 
in  Yellowstone  Park,  is  the  central  vent,  and  the  Bad 
Lands  the  far  nxDrtheast  extremity;  and  it  is  wonderful 
to  see  that  the  evidence  there  is  of  the  fearful  vol- 
canic activity,  which  has  been  witnessed  by  this  part 
of  the  world.     It  is  truly  the  land  of  fire. 

Still  another  object  of  much  interest  is  the  lum- 
ber flumes,  by  which  lumber  and  wood  are  floated 
from  long  distances  from  among  and  up  on  the  moun- 
tains. Flumes  are  like  a  big  trough,  shaped  about 
three  feet  deep  and  water  tight.  They  are  construct- 
ed to  cross  deep  gorges  and  descend  steep  inclines, 
finally  delivering  the  lumber  in  the  valley  or  out  on 
the  plain.  There  is  one  twenty-four  miles  long  near 
Carson  City,  down  which  is  floated  millions  of  feet 
of  lumber  and  hundreds  of  thousands  of  cords  of 
wood.  This  to  home  people,  in  eastern  states,  would 
seem  almost  beyond  belief. 

While  stopping  with  my  son,  I  one  day  deter- 
mined to  explore  the  winding  flume  to  its  terminus, 
several  thousand  feet  above  the  valley.  I  found  it 
quite  a  dangerous  and  adventurous  trip,  although 
there  were  men  stationed  in  little  watch  houses  at  short. 
inter\'als  to  prevent  jams  in  the  flume.  Yet  there 
were  points  from  which  I  almost  shrank  in  terror; 
places  where  it  was  carried  across  gorges  and  along 
the  face  of  cliffs  on  trestle  work  fifty  to  sixty  feet 


186  LIFE    AND.   TRAVELS 

higli,  with  nothing  but  a  ten-inch  boai'd  to  walk  upon. 
Sometimes  it  passed  under  overhanging  rocks  that 
shut  out  the  sun  and  almost  daylight,  but  I  persevered, 
for  I  had  had  some  experience  in  walking  narrow 
ways  through  life.  Besides,  the  watchmen  were  sur- 
prised and  delighted  to  see  me  come  their  way,  as 
it  was  a  rare  thing  for  them  to  see  any  one  from 
the  outside  in  this  lonely  place. 

With  fre(iuent  rest^  and  counsel  from  the  watch- 
xiien,  I  reached  the  summit  by  the  middle  of  the 
.afternoon ;  then  went  down  to  Glennbrook,  three  miles 
away,  on  Lake  Tahoe,  spent  the  night,  and  walked 
back  down  the  flume  n-ext  day ;  not  only  to  the  sui'prise 
.and  delight  of  the  lone  watchmen,  who  greeted  me 
with  hearty  friendship,  but  in  the  city  people  were 
astonished  at  the  performance,  and  for  a  time  the  fe^t 
was  a  noted  event,  and  went  the  round  of  news. 
It  was  truly  an  interesting  trip,  and  is  stamped  upon 
.the  memor\\  There  were  many  scenes  of  wild  beauty 
and  many  of  gloom  and  teiTor,  and  it  was  one  of  the 
practical  lessons  that  could  not  be  leame<l  any  other 
way.  Ever  afterwards  when  I  saw  flumes  delivering 
wood  and  lumber,  I  called  to  mind  the  lumber  men 
off  in  the  mountains  and  the  lone  wat<^hers  along  its 
side,  and  my  sympathy  went  out  to  tliem. 

The  region  around  Caisson  City  is  not  mthout 
historic  interest.     Twelve  miles  awav  is  Yiroinia  Oitv. 


OF    ADDISON    COFFIN.  187 

That  is  where  the  wonderful  Comstock  lode  or  gold 
deposit  was,  now  w^orked  out,  but  from  which  so  many 
millions  were  mined,  and  filled  the  land  with  wonder. 
The  early  California  trail  passed  close  by  the  city, 
and  the  stage  route  started  from  there  over  which 
old  Hank  Monk  drove  Horace  Greely  on  the  cele- 
brated and  historic  ride. 

When  I  left  niy  son,  instead  of  returning  home- 
\yard  over  the  Central  Pacific  Railroad,  I  went  back 
to  San  Francisco  and  took  the  Southern  Pacific  route 
by  Los  Angeles,  thence  eastward  across  Arizona  and 
'New  Mexico  to  El  Paso,  Texas.  This  route  intro- 
duced me  into  new^  scenes  and  new  wonders.  I  made 
my  first  acquaintance  with  the  varied  forms  and 
gigantic  proportions  of  the  cactus  family,  the  most 
interesting  and  astonishing  being  the  giants  on  the 
Yuma  desert,  which  stand  like  huge  pillars  in  the 
shape  of  cucumbers,  rising  to  fifteen  to  thirty  feet, 
and  covered  with  thorns  three  to  five  inches  long. 
Though  they  were  mar^^elous,  they  imparted  a  very 
gloomy,  desolate  look  to  the  vast  and  naked  solitude. 
Other  cacti  were  none  the  less  noticeable,  but  there 
was  more  variety  in  their  forms,  and  instead  of  add- 
ing to  they  relieved  the  drearv^  loneliness  that  ]>ecame 
oppressive,  as  hour  after  hour  we  sped  forward  over 
the  almost  dead  level  of  sand  and  coarse  gravel. 

Yet  all   that    expanse  of  present    sterility    has 


188  LIFE    AND    TRAVELS 

within  itself  capabilities  that  se-em  little  less  than 
miraculous.  With  water  supplied  in  the  proper  quan- 
tity and  right  time,  that  desert  is  more  productive 
than  the  richest  valleys  of  the  world,  for  just  below 
its  apparently  barren  surface  is  a  mixture  of  volcanic 
ashe^  and  tufa,  that  gives  it  inexhaustible  fertility. 
This  opens  up  a  line  of  thought  in  which  the  imagin- 
ation can  picture  the  ideal  of  the  region,  when  it  shall 
bud  and  blossom  into  life  and  be  again  peopled  with 
millions. 

In  Southern  New  Mexico  is  one  of  the  wonderful 
phenomena  that  will  one  day  attract  much  attention, 
and  possibly  become  a  national  problem.  It  is  the 
long  line  of  sandhills  which  are  slowly  advancing 
northwards  before  the  prevailing  winds.  The  sand 
covers  and  destroys  every'  living  thing,  and  the  for- 
ward movement  is  so  sure  and  regular  that  it  can 
be  calculated  with  measurable  certainty.  For  hun- 
dreds of  miles  southward  its  track  can  be  traced,  as 
it  has  slowly  ground  its  way  over  rocks  and  hills, 
across  vallevs  and  streams,  along  the  base  of  moun- 
tains ;  ever\^^here  leaAdng  them  serrated  with  grooves, 
channels  and  fantastic  car^dng  in  the  sandstone  ledges 
and  hard  clay,  and  in  places  foi*ming  singularly- 
shaped  hills  like  a  snow  drift  around  ragged  rocks 
that  held  the  heavier  portion  of  the  great  sand  floe. 

Several  days  were  spent  at  the  historic  point  of 


OF   ADDISON    COFFIN.  189 

El  Paso,  on  the  American  side  of  the  river,  and  in 
Paso  del  Norte,  on  the  Mexican  side.  This  was  one 
of  the  Spanish  inland  settlements,  and  it,  like  many 
other  places,  bears  testimony  to  the  sagacity  and  fore- 
sight of  the  early  Jesuit  fathers.  Though  so  remote 
from  the  coast  and  in  the  midst  of  a  wilderness,  they 
foresaw  its  importance  as  a  passway  through  the 
mountains,  which,  after  a  lapse  of  150  years,  is  now 
being  verified  by  the  concentration  of  railroads  and 
the  proposition,  to  build  a  dam  across  the  river  in  the 
pass  to  form  a  reservoir  for  irrigation,  that  will  equal 
if  not  surpass,  anything  of  the  kind  known  in  modem 
times.  The  largest  amount  of  blasting  powder  ever 
used  at  one  time  up  to  that  date  was  exploded  in  that 
pass.  It  literally  blew  off  the  end  of  the  mountain 
to  make  way  for  a  railroad.  Two  cousins,  who  had 
resided  there  for  some  time,  kindly  showed  me  over 
the  surrounding  hills  and  through  the  fertile  valley, 
just  beginning  to  be  developed  under  modem  appli- 
ances, and  which  has  a  bright  future  before  it.  There 
•are  no  gold  deposits  near  to  distract  and  hinder  its 
progress. 

The  mn  across  the  Staked  plains  to  Ft.  Worth, 
600  miles,  was  uneventful,  but  full  of  interest.  In 
places  there  were  large  herds  of  cattle  in  sight.  In 
the  subterranean  river  belt  many  wind  mills  were  be- 
ing erected  for  irrigation  and  stock  water.     There  had 


190  LIFE    AND    TRAVELS 

been  a  grand  roundup  on  tli€  Pecos  Valley,  and  a 
company  of  cowboys  were  off  on  a  vacation  East. 
lliey  were  a  lively,  half-wild  set  of  good  fellows,  bent 
on  frolic  and  fun.  On  every  side  there  were  thous- 
ands of  active  prairie  dogs  standing,  with  owls,  snakes 
and  prairie  hawks  on  their  mounds  thrown  up  over 
their  burrows.  The  cowboys  opened  up  a  fusillade 
with  their  revolvers,  repeating  carbines  and  Winches- 
ter rifles,  and  only  ceased  when  night  came,  to  be  re- 
newed next  day.  One  of  their  number  got  furiously 
drunk  the  second  dav.  .  His  comiMnions  bundled  him 
off  at  a  wayside  station,  and  the  men  there  put  him  into 
a  coal  shed  to  cool  off.  Then  all  moved  hamioniously 
again  until  we  reached  Ft.  Worth,  where  I  left  the 
pleasant,  though  boisterous,  fellows  with  many  a 
hearty  handshake  and  good  bye. 

From  Ft.  Worth  I  crossed  the  Indian  territory 
to  Parsons,  Kansas,  where  I  was  among  familiar  scenes 
once  more.  From  there  by  way  of  Ft.  Scott,  Kansas 
City,  Lincoln,  Nebraska,  to  Omaha,  thence  by  the 
Burlington  home:  having  traveled  in  all  nearly  10,- 
000  miles.  My  memory  was  so  stored  with  varied 
material,  new  and  wonderful,  that  it  required  several 
weeks  to  re-arrange  and  classify. 

On  my  return,  my  friends  and  neighboi*s  called 
on  me  frequently  to  give  public  talks  on  what  I  had 
seen  and  learned,  and  there  were  some  people  who 


OF    ADDISON    COFFIN, 


191 


doubted  my  statements  on  the  ground  that  it  was.  im- 
ix>ssible  for  one  person  to  see  and  do  so  much  in  so 
short  a  time;  and  many  severe  tests  were  made  to 
prove  my  eyes  and  memory  by  parties  who  had  seen 
portions  of  the  country  I  had  passed  through,  but 
my  memory  did  not  fail  me  in  any  essential  fact  or 
locality,  ^or  did  I  let  it  be  known  that  I  had  fol- 
lowed with  absorbing  interest  the  history  of  all  the 
Pacihc  coast,  from  Clark  and  Lems'  expedition  in 
180i  to  180(5;  John  Jacob  Astor's  founding  of  As- 
toria in  1812;  Fremont's  expedition  in  1844:  to  1850, 
and  the  history  of  Mexico  from  the  conc^uest  down 
to  date,  including  the  revolution.  Independence  and 
the  annexation  of  Texas.  Of  all  this  my  question- 
ers were  measurably  ignorant. 

There  was  also  some  demand  for  written  accounts 
of  my  journey.  Accordingly,  several  articles  were 
prepared  for  state  and  local  papers  which  seemed  to 
meet  the  want,  but  our  country  is  changing  so  rap- 
idly in  almost  every  respect  that  a  correct,  life-like 
description  of  any  particular  locality  will  not  be  a 
true  description  hve  years  later.  There  are  points  in 
Kansas,  Iowa,  Xebraska,  and  all  other  states  west, 
that  were  open,  unbroken  prairie  without  an  inliabit- 
ant,  twenty-five  years  ago,  that  are  now  thickly 
peopled,  with  towns,  cities  and  many  thousands  of 
population.      In  fact,  every  state  and  territory  west 


192  LIFE    AND    TRAVELS 

of  the  Mississippi,  excepting  Arkansas  and  Missouri, 
has  been  occupied  and  peopled  since  1840.  It  would 
be  interesting  to  the  young  people  of  this  generation 
to  see  one  of  Woodbridge  and  Maltabrun's  Geogra- 
phies, with  their  maps,  as  published  from  1832  to 
1840.  ^N^early  half  the  great  west  was  wholly  un- 
known to  the  white  man. 


CHAPTER  SEVEN. 


Trip  to  the  Pacific  Coast — Landing  at  Reno,  and 
Down  to  Carson  City — Stop  With  My  Son  and 
Family — Climbing  Mountains — Trip  to  Southern 
California — Trip  to  El  Paso — Trip  to  Mexico  City 
— Return  to  Texas — To  New  Orleans — Home. 

Soon  after  my  return  from  this  trip  my  wife's 
fatal  illness  began,,  and  as  stated  heretofore,  continued 
on  to  th-e  end,  with  little  rest  from  suffering;  and  in 
the  long  watching  and  nursing  I  broke  down  in  health 
and  strength,  and  for  a  time  my  recovery  was  very 
doubtful,  and  when  the  crisis  passed  my  condition 
was  not  hopeful,  but  a  neighbor  and  special  friend, 
Dr.  Allen  Furnas,  had  sold  his  farm  and  was  going 
to  Southern  California,  so  he  undertook  to  deliver  me 
in  Reno,  Nevada,  where  my  son  would  meet  me. 

On  the  first  of  September,  1889, 1  joined  him  and 
his  family  to  try  what  seemed  rather  a  risky  venture, 
on  account  of  my  weakness.  At  Kansas  City,  Mo., 
we  took  a  tourist  car  and  settled   down  for  house- 

(193) 


194  LIFE    AND    TRAVELS 

keeping  and  a  pleasant  trip.  The  doctor  and  I  had 
traA'eled  much  together,  and  knew  how  to  make  a 
trip  paj.  From  the  start  my  strength  improved,  and 
when  we  reached  the  mountains  in  Colorado  the  effect 
on  me  was  marvelous.  It  seeined  as  though  every 
breath  imparted  new  life  and  energy,  and  natural 
vigor  returned  rapidly  to  body  and  spirit. 

We  wei*e  prepared  to  take  items  by  the  way. 
The  doctor  was  a  successful  correspondent  for  many 
papers;  he  was  observant,  quick  and  penetrating;  so 
with  held  glass,  eye  and  ear,  we  suffered  little  to  pass 
unnoted  on  the  plains  of  Kansas  and  Colorado,  and 
few  mountain  peaks  of  any  consequence  or  beautiful 
valleys  escaped  us.  In  passing  through  the  Greely, 
Col.,  settlement,  I  was  surprised  and  pleased  to  see 
much  improvement  since  I  went  through  it  on  my 
last  trip,  especially  with  the  many  new  farms  and 
miles  of  imgating  canals  and  signs  of  subst-antial 
wealth.  The  doctor  had  not  been  that  way,  and  I 
had  the  honor  of  being  instructor  until  we  reached 
Ogden,  Utah.  Our  fellow-passengers  were  as  inter- 
esting as  anything  we  saw;  for  besides  our  party 
there  was  a  man  and  wife  going  to  Jacksonville,  Ore- 
gon; man  and  \viie  to  Napa,  Cal. ;  two  men  to  Mer- 
ced, Cal.;  two  ladies  to  Southern  California,  and  a 
few  adventurers  ^'going  west."  All  were  intelligent, 
civil,  social  people,  and  we  had  entire  control  of  the 


OF    ADDISON    COFFlN.  195 

tourist  sleejKT.  We  had  a  picnic  three  times  a  day 
from  well-tilled  baskets;  the  porter  fired  up  one  stove 
ou  which  to  make  coffee  and  tea. 

When  we  arrived  on  the  smnmit  in  the  pass, 
nearly  all  experimented  by  getting  out  and  running, 
jumping  and  other  exercises  to  try  the  effect  of  the 
raritied  air  on  their  lungs.  Few  could  stand  much 
effort,  and  some  were  very  much  oppressed  from  lack 
of  breath,  and  suffered  until  we  descended  to  a  lower 
level.  My  lungs  breathed  in  the  clear  mount-ain 
air  like  refreshing  cordial,  and  I  gTew  stronger  every 
hour.  Though  I  had  passed  that  way  before,  there 
was  no  less  interest  than  at  first.  I  saw  new  features 
in  all  the  surroundings,  and  the  improA'ements  were 
advancing  steadily  forward.  The  farms  had  en- 
croached on  hay  lands  along  the  river  and  out  on  the 
plain,  shortening  up  the  cattle  range.  Long  lines  of 
substantial  wire  fence  enclosed  hundreds  of  acres  of 
whe^t  land ;  teams  were  busy  replo^ving  the  sod  broken 
in  the  spring;  lumber  was  piled  along  the  roadside 
for  building  homes.  Dug  outs  and  shacks  with 
chickens  around  them,  and  cows  tethered  to  stakes 
eating  the  luxuriant  gTass,  and  many  other  sigiis  of 
human  life  were  to  be  seen  where  all  was  silent  and 
lone  on  my  former  trip.  This  was  interesting  to  all 
the  company,  who  saw  and  understood  how  rapidly 
the  settlements  were  advancing  on  every  side.     There 


198  LIFE    AND    TRAVELS 

was  a  correspoding  change  in  the  towns  and  villages. 
All  had  increased,  some  had  doubled,  in  size,  while 
others  had  suddenly  sprung  up  as  if  by  magic,  with 
school  houses,  church  spires  and  the  hum  of  active 
life.  Everywhere  the  cowboy  was  being  pushed  back 
toward  the  mountains,  and  his  range  circumscribed 
by  the  ever  fatal  wire  fence.  Green  River  valley 
Wyoming,  was  an  exception  to  this.  It  was  still 
unoccupied,  and  its  bitter  water  region  looked  as  deso- 
late and  neglected  as  ever. 

There  was  a  halt  of  a  few  hours  at  Ogden,  but 
not  time  to  see  much  of  the  city  and  surroundings; 
but  the  lunch  baskets  were  replenished  and  a  few 
luxuries  in  the  form  of  fruit  added.  From  that  point 
the  route  was  new  to  all,  and  we  shared  in  the  hew 
scenes  that  were  constantly  opening  to  view.  We 
all  were  deeply  interested  in  the  40  miles  of  real 
desert,  an  arm  of  the  American  desert  that  lies  to  the 
westward  of  Great  Salt  Lake,  an  expanse  of  naked, 
glittering,  blistering,  white  sand,  dangerous  to  cross 
by  day  in  the  hot  season.  Its  glare  will  make  the 
eyes  and  head  ache,  if  exposed  to  its  reflection  long 
at  a  time.  Though  terrible,  it  is  curious,  and  fur- 
nishes the  greatest  extreme  in  contrast  with  the  un- 
surpassed blue  grass  region  of  Indiana  and  Ohio. 

The  run  down  the  valley  of  the  Humboldt  river, 
in  Nevada,  is  rather  dull  and  tiresome.     The  monot- 


OF    ADDISON    COFFIN.  197 

ony  is  broken  by  the  Humboldt  mountains  and  the 
great  sink,  or  lake,  where  the  river  loses  itself  in  an 
immense  morass,  which  is  an  open  lake  in  winter,  but 
almost  disappears  in  summer.  The  California  trail  of 
1849  to  1855  passed  down  the  entire  length  of  this 
river,  and  in  the  early  days  of  the  gold  excitement, 
especially  in  1849,  there  was  much  suffering  in  this 
valley.  The  grass  failed  and  thousands  of  working 
cattle  died;  wagons  had  to  be  abandoned  and  the 
men  had  to  make  the  rest  of  the  journey  on  foot,  and 
many  perished  by  the  way.  The  few  survivors  of 
the  forty-niners  will  never  forget  the  anguish  of 
that  journey,  beginning  on.  the  Humboldt  and  con- 
.tinuing  all  the  weary  way  over  the  Sierra  range  of 
mountains  to  the  coast. 

When  we  arrived  at  Reno,  where  the  doctor  had 
promised  to  deliver  me  as  an  invalid,  my  health  and 
strength  had  improved  so  much  that  I  was  capable 
of  looking  after  my  own  wants,  and  the  parties  my 
son  had  employed  to  see  after  me  did  not  find  me 
until  I  had  walked  to  the  hotel.  The  parting  with 
the  doctor  and  family  was  a  pleasant  one,  for  he 
and  I  expected  to  meet  again  at  his  new  home  in 
Southern  Califoimia. 

I  took  the  train  for  Carson  City_,  thirty-two  miles 
south,  where  I  landed  safely  and  was  met  by  my  son 
and  wife,  and  felt  thankful  to  the  Lord  for  all  rn^r 

13 


198  LIFE    AND    TRAVELS 

blessings  and  returning  health;  for  life,  aspirations 
and  ambitions  were  coining  back.  My  son,  daughter, 
and  their  two  little  children  did  everything  in  their 
power  to  make  life  agreeable,  and  the  days  passed 
more  like  a  passing  dream  than  a  reality. 

There  was  continued  sunshine,  and  every  day 
more  or  less  walking  was  done.  Soon  I  began  climb- 
ing the  hills,  and  in  a  week,  the  mountains  that  sur- 
round the  city  and  small  valley,  the  great  Sierra 
range  rising  eight  and  ten  thousand  feet  to  the  west, 
within  a  mile  of  the  city,  wdth  many  lofty  peaks  which 
reach  nearly  to  the  per])etual  snow  line.  To  the 
northwest  there  was  a  c<jue-sli'aped  peak,  that  seemed 
to  be  the  highest  point  on  the  range.  The  gla^ss 
showed  that  it  was  a  mass  of  broken  stone  that  had 
been  >hivered  by  eniptive  fire.  In  sjiite  of  my  weak- 
ness an  intense  desire  to  stand  on  that  peak  took  pos- 
session of  my  mind,  and  day  by  day  increased.  Many 
trips  were  taken  to  the  foot  hills  in  that  direction,  and 
then  to  the  tops  of  the  lower  summits. 

This  continued  climl)ing  gave  me  increasing 
■strength  until  at  the  end  of  a  month  I  quietly  stepped 
out  one  morning,  saying  I  was  going  in  that  direc- 
tion, and  was  soon  on  the  trail  that  crossed  the 
mountain,  in  a  gap  twenty-five  hundred  feet  below 
the  peak  and  a  mile  from  its  base.  An  old  rancher 
at  the  foot  of  the  ascent  tried  to  stop  me  from  the 


OF    ADDISON    COFFIN.  199 

adventure,  but  on  failing,  gave  me  some  apples  and 
told  me  where  I  would  find  water  on  the  gap,  and 
probably  one  place  on  the  ascent.  He  gave  me  this 
advice:  Xever  follow  rivers  ascending  or  descending 
mountains;  keep  on  the  ridges  and  spurs  and  you 
are  safe;  you  will  not  get  lost.  And  I  have  found 
this  the  true  way  for  mountain  travel  everywhere. 
I  began  the  ascent  about  8  a.  m.,  and  continued 
steadily  moving  upward,  resting  every  two  hundred 
yards,  with  frequent  stops  to  admire  the  vast  pano- 
rama that  was  opening  around  me.  The  first  spring 
was  dry,  and  although  I  was  tired  and  thirsty  I  moved 
on.  About  1  p.  m.  I  reached  the  pass,  found  the 
spring  and  quenched  my  thirst,  and  ate  one  of  my 
apples;  but  my  ears  began  to  pain  me  very  much, 
accompanied  with  roaring  and  throbbing.  This  I 
stopped  by  filling  them  and  tying  a  handkerchief 
on  the  outside.  My  breathing  was  not  only  perfect, 
but  exhilarating.  An  old  quart  fruit  can  was  found, 
cleansed  and  filled  with  water,  and  after  a  rest  the  final 
ascent  began.  The  excitement  and  the  hope  of  suc- 
•-^ess,  and  the  pure,  life-giving  air,  made  me  forget 
my  weakness,  and  a  few  minutes  after  2  p.  m.  I  was 
on  the  summit.  What  a  scene  lay  before  me.  To 
the  eastward,  the  vast  expanse  extending  to  the  Rocky 
Mountains,  dotted  with  numerous  intervening  ranges. 
To  the  far  southeast  was  the  great  Raliston  desert, 


200  LIFE    AND    TRAVELS 

shimmering  in  the  sunlight,  with  the  sharply-out- 
lined Hot  Springs  range  of  mountains.  To  the  north- 
east was  the  expanse  of  Carson  Sink  and  intervening 
lakes,  with  a  wonderful  view  made  up  of  foot  hills, 
valleys,  towns,  darkness  and  A^olcanic  mountains  be- 
longing to  the  age  of  fire.  AVashoe  lake,  twenty  miles 
away,  seemed  right  at  my  feet — just  a  stone's  throw. 
The  scene  north,  west  and  south  was  beyond  descrip- 
tion. 'No  words  in  our  language  can  express  my  feel- 
ings while  gazing  on  the  many  snow-capped  moun- 
tains that  filled  the  horizon;  and  the  interminable 
infolding,  unfolding  and  eircumfolding  of  the  stu- 
.pendous  range,  as  seen  from  one  of  its  summits.  It 
is  impossible  to  portray  what  can  be  seen,  not  only 
from  that  peak,  but  from  many  others  in  that  part  of 
the  range. 

I  remained  for  about  an  hour,  but  I  could  have 
stayed  for  days  had  not  the  return  been  a  pressing 
necessity.  So  I  drank  my  last  sup  of  water,  ate  my 
apple,  ajid  with  feelings  bordering  on  inspiration, 
the  descent  was  begun.  At  the  spring  the  fruit  can 
jwas  filled,  and  the  downward  grade,  with  it^  tiresome 
holding  back,  w^as  before  me.  As  I  went  up  I  had 
carefully  marked  places  where  distance  could  be  saved 
by  cut  oifs.  Some  of  them  shortened  the  way  by 
several  hundred  yards,  and  one  as  much  as  a  mile  or 
.more.     In  making  it  I  had  a  new  experience.     Soon 


OF    ADDISON    COFFIN.  201 

after  leaving  the  trail,  I  came  out  from  the  scrub  upon 
a  broad  sand  flow,  extending  nearly  to  the  base  of 
the  descent.  I  stepped  on  it  and  it  seemed  to  be  solid/ 
but  in  a  short  distance  I  came  to  loose  sand  and 
commenced  sinking.  In  an  instant  I  knew  the  dan- 
ger and  the  proper  course  to  pursue.  I  threw  myself 
flat  on  my  back  and  lifted  my  feet  to  the  surface, 
and  began  rolling  over  towards  the  right.  In  a= 
moment  the  whole  body  of  the  flow  began  moving 
down  hill  -^vith  me  on  it.  The  situation  was  now 
rather  uncomfortable,  and  I  looked  anxiously  ahead. 
Off  to  the  right,  some  distance  below  me,  and  well  off 
to  the  edge  of  the  flow,  a  small  pine  tree  was  stand- 
ing. By  rolling  over  and  gradually  working  acrass 
the  current,  I  gx)t  in  line  with  the  tree,  then  went 
straight  to  it,  and  was  soon  astride  and  hugging  it  like 
a  friend  in  need.  Being  safe,  I  now  watched  the 
strange  phenomenon.  The  flow  was  two  hundred  feet 
wide  and  several  feet  deep,  and  moved  as  fast  as  a 
man  could  walk,  with  a  singular  humming  or  musical 
sound,  which  was  intensified  by  obstructions  as  rocks 
and  trees.  The  descent  was  nearly  a  thousand  feet, 
at  an  angle  of  about  30  or  35  degrees.  Bv  a  detour 
through  the  scrub  I  reached  the  bottom  of  the  de^ 
scent,  where  the  sand  wias  slowdy  piling  up  among 
the  rocks  and  small  pines.  The  danger  would  have 
been  in  being  covered  up  and  suffocated  in  the  fine, 


202  LIFE    AND    TRAVELS 

yielding  sand,  like  being  in  a  bin  of  flaxseed.  The 
steady  disintegration  of  the  rocks  and  shale  of  which 
the  mountains  are  formed,  the  extremes  of  winter 
frost  and  summer  heat  cause  this  continued  crumbling 
away,  and  produce  sand  flows. 

When  1  returned  that  evening  my  strength  was 
all  gone,  and  I  was  completely  exhausted.  The  ex- 
citement of  the  day  had  been  too  much  for  my  situ- 
ation, so  I  had  to  lie  down  at  once  and  keep  close 
all  next  day.  I  did  not  tell  what  I  had  done  until 
sure  that  I  was  over  the  effects;  then  it  was  hard  for 
tliem  to  believe  I  had  accomplished  the  feat  in  one 
day,  but  my  descriptions  removed  all  doubt.  That 
was  another  landmark  in  life,  another  picture  that 
will  not  fade,  Imt  unfortunately  cannot  be  depicted. 
So  the  days  passed  until  the  snow  began  to  cover  the 
mountain  tops.  Then,  like  a  bird  of  passage,  I  started 
southward. 

From  Carson  City  I  went  directly  to  San  Fran- 
cisco and  there  made  arrangements  to  see  as  much  of 
Southern  California  as  I  could  by  rail.  The  first  trip 
was  down  the  coast  line  route,  through  San  Jose  and 
that  beautiful  valley,  where  everything  seems  tend- 
ing towards  perfection  in  gardening,  fruit  growing 
and  farming.  The  rich,  alluvial  soil,  under  intelli- 
gent cultivation,  is  yielding  marv^elous  results,  and 
it- is  a  joy  to  look  out  on  some  of  the  rural  scenes 


OF    ADDISON   COFFIN.  203 

up  the  valley.  Irrigation  has  been  brought  to  a  high 
state  of  perfection,  and  the  results  are  not  surpassed 
by  the  highest  attainments  of  the  Hollanders  and  Bel- 
gians. From  there  I  went  southward,  up  the  fertile 
and  rapidly-developing  Salinas  Valley  and  on  to  Tem- 
pleton  and  San  Luis  Obispo,  through  a  new,  but 
very  promising  country.  At  Templeton  there  was 
being  opened  up  a  portion  of  countrN^  that  had  a 
grander  future  than  any  other  part  of  the  coast  in  that 
latitude.  This  evidences  the  sagacity  of  the  Jesuits, 
who  realized  the  fact  and  founded  a  mission  there, 
the  ruins  of  which  still  remain.  One  adobe  building, 
covered  with  red  tile,  has  been  standing  over  a  hun- 
dred years,  and  will  stand  many  years  longer  if  undis- 
turbed. 

Upon  returning  to  San  Francisco  I  started  south 
on  the  San  Joaquin  line  of  the  SoutheiTi  Pacific  Rail- 
road, and  passed  up  tbat  rich  valley  and  was  not 
idle  with  my  eyes,  ears  or  field  glass.  Real  estate 
men  were  loud  in  their  praise  and  persistent  in  so- 
liciting land  buyers  to  purchase  in  that  valley,  and 
they  were  almost  a  nuisance  on  the  trains:  man^'  of 
them  wide-moutlied,  brazen,  unprincipled  and  offen- 
sive. 

T  called  at  Tnlare  to  see  some  old  neighl'Ors 
who  had  stopped  there.  Some  practical  fniit  grow- 
ers iireed  me  to  i>-o  l^ack  to  Merced  and  Fresno,  and 


204  LIFE    AND    TRAVELS 

tliej  would  meet  all  expense.  So  I  consented.  At 
Merced  I  was  met  by  a  former  Indianian  and  driven 
out  through  the  wonderful  vineyards  and  fruit  or- 
chards, and  then  out  to  the  naked  desert,  where  there 
was  no  improvement,  that  I  might  understand  the 
amazing  capabilities  of  that  desert  when  watered  and 
cultivated.  The  contrast  was  almost  beyond  belief. 
In  places,  within  GO  feet  of  the  most  vigorous  and 
luxuriant  vines  and  fruit  trees,  the  ground  would  be 
perfectly  barren  and  destitute  of  vegetation;  yet  the 
%'ines  and  trees  were  growing  in  the  same  kind  of  soil. 
Two  days  spent  at  Merced  gave  me  an  intelligent 
idea  of  its  future.  At  Fresno  I  was  met  by  friends 
who  also  drove  me  about  through  rapidly  expanding 
fruit  orchards  and  vineyards.  Here  the  celebrated 
raisin  grape  seemed  to  have  attained  perfection  both 
in  quality  and  quantity.  Looking  out  across  the  wide 
valley,  it  was  difficult  even  to  imagine  what  the  future 
of  that  productive  land  would  be,  for  the  snow-cov- 
ered mountains  told  me  there  would  never  be  a  lack 
of  water  while  snow  fell. 

'E-etuming  to  Tulai-e,  my  friend  and  I  had  a 
pleasant  social  time,  and  then  the  journey  southward 
was  resumed.  But  fate  ^vas  again  adverse.  At 
Bakersfield  I  fell  into  the  hands  of  the  manager  of 
the  T5,000-acre  ranch,  near  the  town,  who  for  two 
davs  fed  and  carted  me  over  the  larae  farm.      The 


OF    ADDISON    COFFIN.  205 

sight  was  gmiul  and  surprising.  There  were  500 
brood  mares  on  the  land,  wdth  an  average  stock  of 
2,000  head  of  horses,  15,000  head  of  cattle,  and 
several  thousand  head  of  sheep.  The  improvement 
sheds  looked  more  like  the  repair  shops  of  a  railroad 
than  anything  belonging  to  a  fann.  There  were  a 
dozen  traction  engines,  with  as  many  threshers  and 
separators,  and  binders  and  mowers  by  the  score. 
One  raili-oad  harvester  cut,  threshed  and  stacked 
up  the  grain  while  moving  as  fast  as  the  average 
trot  of  a  horse.  The  long  line  of  hay  ricks,  straw 
ricks  and  other  kinds  of  food  indicated  the  amount 
it  took  to  feed  their  live  stock.  The  garden  where 
the  vegetables  were  raised  covered  five  acres,  and  the 
eating  house  was  like  an  immense  hotel.  While 
there  I  witnessed  their  mode  of  branding  the  colts. 
They  were  all  in  small  pens  for  easy  handling.  With 
a  hot  iron  they  marked  each  one  on  the  neck  under 
the  mane,  with  the  date,  age  and  the  number;  this 
was  entered  in  a  book  by  a  clerk  standing  by.  It 
was  often  times  visible  for  life,  and  served  as  a  means 
of  identification  and  of  tracing  pedigree.  They  fur- 
nished a  salesman  300  hoi*ses  per  year  in  San  Fran- 
cisco, and  shipped  fine  stock  all  over  the  world. 

This  detention  on  my  journey  was  the  most  in- 
teresting of  any,  as  it  opened  wider  the  possibilities 
of  that  country;     The  water  for  irrigation  was  sup- 


206  LIFE    AND    TRAVELS 

])lied  by  a  large  cajial  out  of  King  river.  Leaving 
Bakersfield  in  the  morning,  I  passed  the  celebrated 
loop  on  the  Tehiehapa  mountains,  where  the  railroad 
crosses  itself,  the  first  engineering  feat  of  the  kind 
ever  accomplished.  It  was  in  the  forenoon  when  we 
passed  it.  The  sun  was  favorable^  and  I  had  a  sat- 
isfactory view.  Though  wonderful  in  results,  it  is 
simple  and  easily  to  be  understood.  But  loops  have 
now  be<'r)me  commcm  in  crossing  mountains,  and  have 
ceased  to  astonish  engineers.  Beyond  the  loop  we  ran 
out  into  the  Mojave  desert,  a  very  singular  region, 
where  the  whole  barren  plain  is  covered  thickly  with 
sand  dunes — ^^peculiarly-shaped  and  oddly-grouped 
sand  hills.  As  yet  speculation  has  failed  to  explain 
the  reason,  but  for  some  cause  or  other,  they  give 
the  landscape  a  forbidding,  gloomy  look,  ^o  one 
wants  to  stop  there. 

At  Sangus  I  took  a  branch  road  and  ran  down  to 
Hanta  Barbara,  on  the  coast.  It  is  one  of  the  old 
S]:)anish  towns,  beautifuly  located  in  a  green  valley, 
and  surrounded  on  two  sides  by  low  mountains.  It 
is  one  of  the  quiet,  restful,  sleepy  places,  where  one 
wants  to  go  to  enjoy  genuine  laziness,  for  the  scenery 
is  soothing  and  the  breeze  is  delightful.  Retuni- 
ing  to  the  main  line.  I  coon  reached  the  far-famed 
Los  Angeles. 

T^pon  my  first  visit  t(^  this  city,  time  and  oppor- 


OF    ADDISON    COFFIN 


207 


timity  was  not  at  my  command  for  sight-seeing,  but 
now  there  was  both  time  and  the  will  to  see  all.     Mj 
first  move  was  to  run  out  on  all  the  short  line  rail- 
roads touching  the  city,  three  or  four  going  to  would- 
be  commercial  ports  on  the  coast,  then  down  the  shore 
to  San  Diego,  near  the  Mexican  line.     A  day  was 
spent  in  examining  the  possibilities  of  that  great  city 
of  the  future.     There  was  a  port  and  harbor  that 
cannot  be  surpassed  for  safety,  capacity  and  all  such 
requirings,  but  the  city  Avill  be  slow  in  building.     It 
is  too  far  south,  down  in  the  relaxing  latitude  where 
men  lose  their  energy  and  activity;  it  will  never  be  a 
San  Francisco  or  a  Portland.     Upon  my  return  to 
Los  Angeles  I  ran  out  on  the  railroads  for  a  hundred 
or  two  miles,  through  all  the  present  and  prospective 
fruit  region;  stopped  at  Riverside,  San  Jacinto,  Cot- 
ton, San  Eeraardino,  Pomona,  Passadena,  and  many 
other  fruit  centers;  then  went  to  rest  at  the  home  of 
my  friend.  Dr.  Furnas,  who  had  settled  at  El  Modena, 
38  miles  from  Tx)S  Angeles.     Instead  of  resting,  he 
and  other  old  friends  in  the  village  of  300  people  (I 
knew  all  but  one  family)  took  me  out  driving  every 
day,  or  climbing  the  adjoining  mountains.     In  this 
way  I  learned  much  of  the  daily  life  of  the  inhabit- 
ants, and  talked  with  them  respecting  their  prospec- 
tive hopes   of  success,   and   saw  many   examples   of 
prosperity  as  well  as  many  sad,  disastrous  failures. 
The  great  boom  had  just  collapsed,  and  there  were 


208  LIFE    AND    TRAVELS 

hundreds  of  families  completlv  ruined  and  almost 
destitute.  There  were  many  skeleton  towns  and 
future  ''great  cities"  wholly  deserted,  and  the  stakes 
which  marked  the  city  lots  were  still  standing  alone 
amid  the  solitude,  ^ot  a  few  around  me  were  heap- 
ing curses  on  the  cause  of  their  i*uin;  families  who 
had  lost' their  all  were  sending  east  to  their  friends 
for  monev  to  go  back.  To  add  to  the  troubles,  the 
grape  blight  had  passed  over  the  land,  and  the  scale 
bug  was  attacking  orange  trees,  which  was  the  cause 
of  much  anxiety.  Taking  all  these  things  together, 
I  was  fortunate  in  the  time  of  my  visit.  When  I 
first  saw  El  Modena  it  was  at  the  beginning  of  the 
boom,  before  the  grape  blight  had  done  its  work,  and 
the  whole  land  was  in  a  glow  of  extravagant  ex- 
2>ectation,  and  all  the  people  seemed  almost  incapable 
of  sober  reasoning.  Xow  things  were  at  the  opposite 
extreme. 

Among  the  many  interesting  places  visited  was 
the  ostrich  farm,  where  there  are  over  100  live  birds, 
some  of  them  gigantic  creatures,  attaining  greater 
height  and  weight  than  in  Cape  Colony,  from  whence 
the  stock  was  imported.  In  the  company  were  sev- 
eral of  the  original  importation,  which  had  been  se- 
lected for  theii'  size  and  perfect  development;  but 
the  offspring  had  excelled  them,  showing  the  envir- 
onment of  Southern  California  superior  to  Southern 


OF    ADDISON    COFFIN.  209 

Africa.  The  speculation  had  not  been  as  successful 
a^  expected,  but  was  paying  expenses. 

One  picnic  was  held  on  top  of  the  mountains, 
two  miles  away.  In  going  we  passed  through  an 
orange  orchard,  with  the  ripening  fruit  beginning 
to  fall,  of  which  we  partook  as  hungry  people  only 
can.  Three  times  in  the  ascent  we  found  rare  wild 
flowers,  considered  as  delicate  greenhous'e  plants  in 
Indiana.  It  was  a  beautiful  day,  and  the  pure  moun- 
tain breeze  was  very  bracing  to  the  invalids,  and 
their  care-takers  had  little  trouble  in  looking  after 
them.  In  the  afternoon  we  returned  by  a  small  fruit 
farm,  and  found  an  abundant  supply  of  second  crop 
strawberries,  of  which  we  wxre  not  slow  to  partake. 
Farther  on  we  ate  ripe  tomatoes  from  vines  two  years 
old,  and  by  a  unanimous  vote  we  resolved  to  say  no 
more  about  the  day's  findings. 

Irrigation  was  one  of  the  subjects  that  claimed 
my  attention.  My  son  was  extensively  engaged  and 
interested  in  it.  He  had  studied  and  collected  state 
reports  of  engineers,  from  which  I  gained  much  in- 
formation, and  could  the  more  intelligently  study 
the  subject  in  the  sections  where  the  greatest  per- 
fection had  been  attained.  It  is  still  in  its  infancy, 
and  it  is  Avonderful  to  see  what  has  already  been  ac- 
complished without  anticipating  the  future.  But  of 
4;his  I  feel  assured  that  inside  of  fifty  years  the  larger 


210  LIFE    AND    TRAVELS 

portion  of  our  people  will  be  living  in  the  irrigating 
region,  where  the  desert  now  is,  and  the  water  ques- 
tion will  have  become  the  absorbing  and  vital  one, 
not  only  to  agriculture,  but  to  future  national  growth 
and  expansion. 

At  length  I  bade  a  kind  good-bye  to  the  doctor 
and  his  family,  and  my  many  other  friends,  and  re- 
sumed my  homeward  journey,  passing  through  the 
great  waterless  basin,  three  hundred  feet  below  the  sea 
level.  It  seems  to  have  been  the  bed  of  a  former 
lake,  or  arm  of  the  gulf,  which  it  is  now  proposed 
to  fill  again  by  turning  the  Colorado  river  <jut  of  its 
present  channel.  The  new  lake  would  cover  many 
thousands  of  s<:iuai*e  miles,  and  change  the  climate 
of  a  large  territory  of  now  barren  sand.  It  was  a 
gala  day  with  the  Indians  at  Yuma,  Arizona,  where 
we  cross  the  Rio  Grande  river ;  they  were  ^  out  on 
dress  parade  bv  the  hundreds.  Many  were  display- 
ing for  sale  the  usual  bead  basket,  plaited,  woven  and 
painted  work,  ranging  from  a  baby's  moccasin  to  a 
flaming  red  blanket,  all  very  ingeniously  and  neatly 
done. 

We  passed  next  into  the  gloom  of  the  Yuma 
•desert,  which  had  not  lost  any  of  its  interest  and 
dreariness  since  I  first  crossed,  it.  The  passage  was 
all  made  by  daylight  this  time.  There  wa^  a  range 
of  sand  hills  not  seen  before,  resembling  the  dunes 


OF    ADDISON    COFFIN.  211 

Oil  the  Mojave  desert,  init  the  ever-present  giant 
cactus  grew  on  the  sides  and  summits  as  on  the  level. 
It  is  very  curious  t(3  see  the  way  the  railroad  is  pro- 
tected from  the  drifting  sand.  The  lighter  portion 
of  the  sand,  when  carried  by  the  wind,  follows  the 
same  laws  of  drifting  snow,  and  the  same  kind  of 
guards  and  wind  brakes  are  built.  The  heavy,  roll- 
ing sand  follows  the  same  law  of  flowing  water,  and 
it  is  a  singular  sight  to  see  long  lines  of  deep,  wide 
ditches  where  water  never  flows.  As  a  ditch  is  filled, 
others  on  a  higher  level  are  dug  until  the  accumula- 
tion changes  the  flow,  and  sends  to  one  side  to  con- 
stantly repeat  the  process.  The  life  of  the  section 
hands  out  on  the  arid  plains  is  exceedingly  dreary  and 
laborious,  often  suffering  the  extremes  of  thirst  and 
heat. 

A  stop  of  a  few  hours  was  made  at  Tucson, 
Arizona,  a  place  that  mav  one  day  become  an  im- 
portant center  of  business;  the  valley  is  fertile  and 
water  abundant.  We  also  stayed  several  hours  at 
Benson.  The  country  around  looked  so  extremely 
forbidding  that  I  queried  why  any  one  should  wish 
to  live  in  such  a  place;  but  the  express  agent  pointed 
to  a  baggage  car  where  there  was  a  large  stack  of 
gold  and  silver  bars  piled  up  like  cord  wood.  They 
were  collected  from  mines  down  in  Mexico  and  were 
in  the  crude  stage,   but  represented   immense  value 


212  LIFE    AND    TRAVELS 

when  purified.  ]\Ien  will  go  anywhere  for  gold,  and 
so  were  living  in  this  forbidding  place.  I  was  glad 
when  we  started,  for  the  desolation  was  oppressive 
to  my  mind,  and  I  wanted  to  reach  the  mountains 
ahead  for  relief.  And  beyond  were  the  wonderful 
moving  sand  hills,  which  would  noAv  have  additional 
interest,  and  it  was  as  anticipated.  The  mountains 
were  of  the  old  volcanic  time,  and  were  full  of  cur- 
ious, fantastic  combinations  of  rugged  views  not  seen 
in  any  other  mountain  foniiations,  and  are  peculiar 
to  that  great  volcanic  belt,  two  thousand  miles  long 
and  eight  hundred  wide  and  almost  treeless. 

When  the  sand  hills  were  sighted,  a  strong  wind 
was  blowing  from  the  scmthwest,  which  carried  the 
fine  sand  in  clouds,  just  like  the  fine,  drifting  snows 
on  the  prairies  of  loAva  and  Nebraska.  Sometimes 
the  clouds  would  reach  the  train  and  fill  the  cars  with 
dust  that  settled  like  fine  flour  on  clothing  and  seats. 
Tlie  dust  was  very  suggestive,  and  I  made  note  of 
the  connection  there  might  be  between  it  and  the 
new  theory  of  the  luminous  character  of  our  atmos- 
phere depending  upon  the  atoms  of  dust  floating  in 
it,  and  that  the  nucleus  of  every  raindrop  was  an 
atom  of  dust,  which  absorbed  moisture  until  it  could 
no  longer  float,  and  so  descended  in  the  form  of  rain. 
•Here  was  one  of  the  sources  of  supply  for  atmos- 
pheric dust,  so  the  time  from  there  to  El  Pa^o  v/as 


OF    ADDISON    COFFIN.  218 

spent  ill  trying  to  reconcile  the  new  theory  with  old 
prejudices. 

At  El  Paso  my  cousins  welcomed  me  again  to 
their  home,  and  we  spent  many  hours  rehearsing  our 
adventures,  for  they,  too,  were  wanderers  to  some 
extent.  The  reminiscences  of  early  life  had  to  be 
called  up  and  discussed;  the  results  of  my  present  trip 
were  talked  OA^er;  latest  news  from  the  old  home 
eagerly  listened  to,  winding  up  with  local  happenings. 

There  was  a  Catholic  festival  being  celebrated 
on  the  Mexican  side  in  Paso  Del  Norte,  and  one 
of  the  accompaniments  w^as  a  succession  of  bull  fights. 
My  own  desire,  and  a  small  amount  of  urging  by  iiiy 
cousins,  decided  me  to  see  one.  Accompanied  by 
one  of  my  relatives,  I  crossed  the  river  and  went 
to  the  place  w^here  the  daily  tights  were  held.  It 
Avas  in  a  large,  circular  enclosure,  with  seats  capable 
of  seating  several  thousand  people ;  the  area  was  about 
100  feet  in  diameter.  This  day's  performance  was 
with  six  bulls,  three  of  which  refused  to  tight  and 
were  hissed  out  of  the  ring.  One  made  some  show 
of  resistance,  but  was  finally  sent  out  in  disgrace. 
One  made  a  good  fight,  and  was  taken  out  with 
honors;  and  one,  the  last,  was  frantic  and  furious 
with  previous  torture  when  he  entered  the  ring,  mak- 
ing it  dangerous  for  -all  within  reach.  One  horse 
was  gored  and  hurled  to  the  ground,  and  the  rider 

14 


214  LIFE    AND    TRAVELS 

badly  bruised;  one  man,  when  pursued,  escaped  hy 
a  hand's  breadth  behind  the  safeguard.  After  being 
tortured  with  barbed  arrows  thrust  in  and  hanging 
on  his  shouklers  and  sid^s,  and  gored  with  lances, 
the  executioner  came  into  the  ring  with  a  long,  dou- 
ble-edged sword.  The  bull  was  decoyed  by  red  fla^ 
to  the  opposite  side  of  the  ring,  then  all  ran  behind 
the  barrier.  On  looking  around  the  bull  saw  the 
executioner  waving  the  red  flag  defiantly.  In  an 
instant  the  bull  uttered  a  fierce  bellow,  lowered  his 
head  and  ran  at  full  speed  right  on  the  man,  who 
seemed  to  be  doomed  to  certain  death;  but  with  a 
dexterity  and  agility  perfectly  amazing,  he  thrust 
the  sword  between  the  shoulders  to  the  heart  of  the 
bull,  withdrew  it  and  sprang  aside,  while  the  animal 
made  one  more  convulsive  spring  and  fell  dead,  the 
life  blood  spouting  from  the  wound.  This  was  done 
so  quickly  that  the  eye  could  not  follow  all  the  move- 
ments of  the  executioner.  I  have  not  seen  such  skill 
displayed  an\^vhere,  or  in  any  kind  of  business,  as 
displayed  by  this  '^Matadore.''  Yet  the  whole  scene 
is  cruel  and  brutal  in  the  extreme;  there  is  nothing  re- 
fining or  elevating,  but  everything  that  is  brutalizing 
and  degTading.  When  we  see  a  bull  fight  we  under- 
stand why  the  Spanish  race  is  on  the  down  grade  in 
civilization  and  national  strength;  if  they  had  no 
other  sin,  bull  fighting  would  be  enough  to  ruin  their 
moralitv  in  a  few  centuries. 


OF    ADDISON    COFFIN.  2J5 

From  early  boyliood  J  had  settled  it  in  my  mind 
that  one  day  1  would  see  the  celebrated  Falls  oi 
Montezuma,  in  Mexico.  The  first  desire  came  from 
reading  Peter  Parley's  stories,  and  it  grew  with  my 
youth  and  strengthened  with  my  strength.  So  being 
free  from  hindering  causes,  I  determined  to  make 
the  trip  from  El  Paso.  To  determine  was  to  act,  so  I 
started  full  of  anticipation,  and  an  inward  feeling 
that  I  would  succeed. 

The  tirst  two  hundred  miles  were  without  spei-ial 
interest;  valley,  mountain  and  plain  were  a  continu- 
ation of  what  lay  northward.  After  reaching  Chi- 
huahua, the  country  assumes  distinctive  features; 
strangely-formed  mountain  peaks,  seemingly  capped 
with  artificial  towers,  and  massive  walls.  Others  aj>- 
pear  to  have  been  thrust  up  from  the  valley  with 
flat  tops  like  the  hills  in  the  Yellowstone  River  valley. 
The  foothills  are  precipitous  bluifs  and  cliifs  instead 
of  having  rounded  forms;  but  the  most  singular  fea- 
ture is  the  immense  quantity  and  variety  of  cacti. 
In  places  there  are  hundreds  of  acres  covered  so 
densely  with  the  fan-leaf  plant  that  the  heaviest  lo- 
comotive, if  put  on  full  speed,  would  not  penetrate 
the  mass  fifty  yards.  Other  places  are  very  large 
groves  of  the  various  forms  of  tree  cacti,  giving  the 
valley  an<l  hills  a  picturesque  look  which  cannot  be 
described  for  want  of  a  standard  of  c<>mparison.  for 


216  LIFE    AND    TRAVELS 

the  like  is  not  found  outside  that  great  central  valley. 
The  towns  and  cities  also  become  very  interesting; 
the  further  away  from  the  border  the  more  distinc-" 
tively  foreign  they  become,  the  style  and  customs 
of  the  people  change,  the  carts,  wagons,  agricultural 
implements,  mode  of  farming,  gardening,  local  trans- 
portation, all  seems  rude  and  primitive.  The  houses 
have  an  Eastern  look,  .^the  internal  domestic  arrange- 
ments savor  of  Eastern  life,  and  we  are  startled  at  the 
reminders  of  Bible  descriptions  of  houses  and  home 
life  that  present  themselves.  As  we  go  forward  the 
country  shows  a  strange  contradiction  of  prosperity 
and  decline.  Sometimes  we  pass  along  lines  of  stone 
walls  that  enclose  deserted  lields,  and  tine  old  S]mn- 
ish  mansions  in  ruin;  then  we  pass  the  cnimbling 
remains  of  old  adohe  churches,  with  broad  lands  be- 
C(~)ming  a  wilderness;  then,  in  striking  contrast,  we 
will  pass  broad  acres  of  grain  and  fine  gardens,  with 
a  thriving,  active  town  in  the  center,  where  thin^ 
look  bright  and  promising.  The  ruins  are  the  re- 
mains of  Spanish  conquest  and  church  authority,  both 
now  gone.  Mexican  Independence  ruined  the  Span- 
ish grandees,  and  chronic  revolution  broke  the  op- 
pression of  the  church;  and  these  are  the  ques- 
tions hard  to  solve  as  to  which  was  the  better,  Spain^s 
stability,  or  modern  revolution?  Judged  by  appear- 
ances, there    was  as  much  bread    produced  on   the 


OF   ADDISON    COFFIN,  217 

now  waste  lands  of  th^  grandees  and  church,  under 
Spanish  nile,  as  by  the  present  generation,  accord- 
ing to  population.  At  many  places  we  see  where 
gold  and  silver  mines,  once  productive,  have  been 
abandoned,  and  at  places  where  the  mines  are  still 
worked,  the  natives  use  the  rude,  clumsy  machinery 
in  use  a  hundred  years  ago.  The  new  houses  being 
built  are  like  those  of  the  past,  no  modern  improve- 
rrients  introduced;  everything,  so  far  as  humanity 
is  concerned,  is  fixed  and  crystalized.  To  thinking^ 
people,  I  find  it  a  matter  of  surprise  that  <iur  next- 
door  neighbor  to  the  south  should  really  be  five  hun- 
dred years  behind  us  in  the  essential  things  of  life 
— twelve-year-old  children  compared  to  parents. 

So  I  went  on  1,224  miles,  peering  around  on 
every  side,  plying  my  fellow-passengers  with  ques- 
tions of  the  reason  why  for  many  strange  things, 
the  names  of  plants,  trees,  birds  and  animals.  At 
one  place  a  striking  scene  met  my  gaze,  for  it  was 
scriptural  to  the  letter.  A  wealthy  man,  who  planted 
10,000  acres  of  corn  each  year,  was  out  with  fifty 
yoke  of  cattle  plowing  in  a  field  a  mile  wide;  and 
quite  like  the  prophet  r)f  old,  this  man  had  the  en- 
tire fifty  yoked  before  him.  As  he  rode  slowly  be- 
hind them,  the  whole  thing  was  a  great  contrast  to 
the  ranch  at  Bakersfield,  in  California.  On  one 
occasion   T   o-ot  the  worst  for  my  curiositv.      T   was 


218  LIFE    AND    TRAVELS 

watching  the  changing  views  of  a  beautiful  lake  near 
by,  and  innocently  asked  the  conductor  its  name" 
then  there  was  an  explosion  of  merriment  at  my 
expense.  It  was  a  perfect  *'mirage/'  while  the  real 
lake  was  miles  away,  yet  I  watched  the  illusive  pictui-e 
with  unabated  interest,  and  I  see  it  in  memory  as  a 
genuine  lake. 

But  all  my  political  speculation,  eager  question- 
ing, etc.,  suddenly  ended  when  we  slowed  up  at  the 
•depot  of  the  city  of  the  Montezumas.  My  joy  at 
realizing-  that  I  had  lived  to  accomplish  this  hope 
of  early  life  was  little  less  than  when  I  stood  on  the 
Great  Pyramid  in  Egypt,  or  walked  on  the  walls  of 
Jeiiisalem.  As  S(X>n  as  a  room  was  secured  I  sought 
the  grand  cathedral,  and  from  its  highest  spire  viewed 
the  wonderful  surroundings;  the  first  things  I  looked 
for  with  my  glass  were  the  old  causeways  that 
were  so  important  in  the  conquest,  and  the  defense 
of  the  first  conquest;  then  the  lake,  the  amphitheatre 
of  the  mountains  and  the  volcano.  The  causeways 
were  nearly  all  destroyed,  the  lake  was  nearly  drained, 
but  the  mountains  were  there  with  a  dark  cloud  of 
smoke  ascending  from  the  crater. 

At  my  feet,  and  far  around,  lay  the  city,  so 
unlike  all  othei-s  in  America,  with  its  thronging 
thousands,  who,  too,  were  unlike  any  other  people 
on    the    continent.      The    greatest    surprise    was    the 


OF    ADDISON    COFFIN.  219 

oriental  character  of  all  the  older  portion  of  the  city; 
from  my  outlook  I  could  see  a  complete  counterpart 
of  eastern  cities  built  centuries  ago;  every  feature 
and  outline  of  the  make-up  filled  me  with  astonish- 
ment. There  was  nothing  American  about  it  but 
the  street  cars.  Instead  of  the  rattle  and  clang  of 
drays,  hacks  and  wheeled  vehicles,  there  were  thous- 
ands of  porters,  men  and  women,  bearing  boxes,  bales 
and  bundles  on  their  backs  as  they  did  in  the  time  of 
Solomon. 

There  were  whole  squares  enclosed  with  a  solid 
wall,  with  but  one  entrance  through  a  large  arched 
gateway  into  an  open  area  or  court  in  the  center, 
and  all  the  houses  opened  into  it;  the  roofs  were 
flat  as  in  Bible  lands.  All  this  was  unexpected,  and 
in  one  sense  a  disappointment;  there  was  no  trace 
of  the  Montezumas  left;  all  was  Oriental  and  foreign. 

A^Hien  we  left  the  cathedral  I  hurried  to  the 
museum  to  see  the  great  calendar  stone,  which  had 
become  such  an  object  of  wonder  to  the  archaeologists 
of  the  world.  On  entering  the  great  hall  it  stood 
right  before  me,  in  front  of  the  main  entrance.  It 
is  a  circular  stone,  about  eight  feet  in  diameter,  and 
about  the  proportion  of  a  great  mill  stone  in  thick- 
ness. Every  square  inch  of  its  surface  is  covered 
with  hieroglyphics.  The  outer  circumference  is 
curiously  carved  into  regular  irregular  figures,  then 


220  LIFE    AND    TRAVELS 

a  perfect  circle  is  drawn  and  divided  into  degrees 
as  accurately  as  our  skilled  experts  could  have  done. 
Then  the  whole  face  is  di^dded  by  concentric  circles, 
and  the  spaces  coA^ered  with  indecipherable  figures 
of  men,  birds,  animals  and  mystic  characters.  There 
is  the  most  perfect  regularity  and  seemingly  scien- 
tific and  mechanical  skill  in  every  part  of  the  record. 
The  representations  are  distinctly  different  from  any- 
thing seen  on  Egyptian  or  Assyrian  stones.  They 
are  more  like  characters  used  by  the  Hittites,  as  given 
by  William  Wright  in  a  recent  publication.  Thus 
far  the  statement  of  the  wonderful  stone  is  a  sealed 
book,  and  may  long  remain  so.  If  it  ever  should 
be  read,  it  mav  reveal  gi^eater  facts  and  open  up 
a  wider  field  of  research  than  the  discoveries  now 
being  made  by  the  various  antiouarian  associations. 
Who  knows  but  the  world  was  peopled  from  x\merica? 
Who  knows  but  what  Yucatan  and  Central  America 
may  have  been  to  primitive  man  what  England  is  to 
the  world  of  to-day  ?  The  world  has  witnessed  more 
radical  changes  in  opinion  than  this  would  be,  in  spite 
of  deep-rrK)ted  prejudices  and  racial  selfishness. 

To  me  the  calendar  stone  was  most  curious,  yet 
there  are  many  other  relics  of  pre-historic  time  that 
carry  us  back  into  a  past,  that  remains  lost,  but  there 
is  a  striking  and  startling  resemblance  between  it  and 
rrianv  of  the  discoveries  made  in  Bible  lands  which 


OF    ADDISON    COFFIN. 


221 


belong  to  remote  anticpiity.  As  I  looked  into  the 
faces  painted  and  moulded  on  the  strong  jugs  and 
water  jars  that  stood  around  the  great  hall,  they 
spoke  of  a  past  civilization  vet  to  be  revealed — one 
that  had  the  art  of  lifting  huge  blocks  of  stone 
and  the  idea  of  massiveness  in  their  structures;  the 
same  thought  of  settled  continuance  as  the  people  who 
are  found  in  the  oldest  civilization  known.  Some- 
times I  came  u])on  a  relic  that  seemed  to  proclaim 
its  African  ongin,  and  every^vhere  the  indecipher- 
able hieroglyphics  call  to  mind  the  lost  Hittite.  To 
my  mind,  there  is  not  a  shadow  of  evidence  that  any 
part  of  Mexican  antiquity  had  a  Mongolian  or  Asiatic 
origin. 

The  saddest  thing  I  saw  in  Mexico  was  the  wreck 
and  ruin  wrought  by  the  murderous  and  bigoted  Span- 
iard; even  the  calendar  stone  bears  marks  of  the 
sledge  hammer  wielded  by  fanatical  Spanish  priests, 
and  collected  fragments  of  priceless  works  of  art  attest 
to  the  thorough  manner  in  which  they  did  the  work  of 
diabolical  ruin.  The  world  may  never  know  again 
who  built  those  strong,  lost  cities,  or  by  what  power 
they  fell,  but  their  ruins  will  appeal  in  dumb  elo- 
quence to  the  lovers  of  the  grand  and  beautiful 
through   all   time. 

When  T  left  the  museum  I  turned  my  attention 
to  the  tides  of  life  that  were  thronging  the  streets; 


222  LIFE    AND    TRAVELS 

mueli  of  all  I  saw  was  new.  The  contrast  between 
the  extremes  of  humanity  was  very  noticeable.  The 
pure  Castilian  type  were  as  tine  specimens  of  human 
beings  as  we  see  anywhere;  they  seemed  the  remnant 
of  a  lost  race  among  strangers.  The  other  extreme, 
or  the  sample  which  I  took  for  it,  was  a  company 
of  mountaineer  Indians  wdio  came  into  the  city  with 
.small  donkeys  loaded  with  evergreens  for  decorations 
at  festivals.  The  men  and  women  had  nothing  on 
but  a  single  grain  sack,  with  a  hole  cut  for  the 
head  and  anns,  which  hung  loose  about  them.  They 
were  of  dark  brown  complexion,  with  long,  glossy, 
black  hair,  and  appeared  to  be  enjoying  their  mea- 
sure of  life  as  well  as  the  grandees. 

There  is  a  possibility  that  the  original  Aztec 
race  may  yet  return  to  power  and  re-establish  their 
nationality,  for  the  Aztec  countenance  seemed  to  pre- 
dominate in  the  multitude,  though  the  Spanish  pre- 
vailed among-  the  business  ranks.  I  strolled  through 
the  market  on  the  great  square  in  front  of  the  cathe- 
dral, and  the  large  market  houses  in  other  parts. 
I  also  got  on  the  street  cai-s  and  rode  to  all  parts 
of  the  city,  w4th  no  particular  object  in  view,  but 
always  looking  and  learning.  In  the  older  portions 
all  is  primitive,  in  the  more  modern  there  are  many 
innovations.  Modern  mansions  stand  beside  Moor- 
ish structures;  in  places  the  enclosing  walls  are  broken 


OF    ADDISON    COFFIN.  223 

tliroiigh  and  modern  street  fronts  break  the  monotony, 
bnt  the  thousands  of  shambling,  half -trotting  porters 
are  everywhere,  acting  hoi-se,  dray  and  hack,  car- 
rying loads  we  would  think  beyond  powers  of  en- 
durance, and  they  neyer  cease  to  be  marvelous  and 
entertaining. 

Many  of  the  articles  in  the  market  were  un- 
known to  me,  and  often  I  did  not  know  their  use. 
Compounds  cut,  dipped,  poured  and  smeared  about 
that  looked  and  smelled  repulsive  to  the  untrained 
eve  and  nose.  Yet  when  I  laid  down  at  night  and 
summed  up  the  day's  observation,  I  came  to  the 
conclusion  that  there  is  a  measure  of  enjoyment  in 
almost  any  condition  of  life,  though  it  may  be  through 
ignorance  of  anything  better. 

A  person  with  an  eye  to  the  sublime  and  beau- 
tiful, with  all  the  gradations  to  ludicrous  and  re- 
volting, can  spend  several  months  in  the  City  of 
Mexico  and  find  something  new  every  day,  and  wi-ite 
an  amusing  book.  Though  it  was  in  December,  it 
was  too  warm  to  walk  on  the  sunny  side  of  the 
street,  and  ladies  carried  parasols  when  out  shopping; 
beautiful  flowers  were  blooming  in  the  open  air,  and 
to  me  it  seemed  more  like  early  June  than  Decem- 
l>er.  I  saw  but  few  cloaks  of  any  kind,  and  mine 
was  the  only  fur  cap  in  the  place,  and  I  was  called 
an  old  Russian  for  wearing  it.     Hotel  fare  was  cheaper 


224  LIFE    AND    TRAVELS 

tbaii  in  the  states,  but  the  food  was  red  hot  with 
pepj)er,  and  my  month  and  throat  at  first  refused 
to  tolerate  the  heatexl  applications,  othei'^vise  Mexican 
food  was  quite  passable. 

On  the  return  trip  I  traveled  by  day  what  I 
had  passed  over  by  night  in  going  down,  and  made 
short  stops  at  some  of  the  old  cities:  Irapuato,  Aguas, 
Oalientes,  Zoca  VcK-as;  then  at  Torean  took  the  Mexi- 
can Central  Railroad,  going  eastward  to  Eagle  Pass 
on  the  Rio  Grande,  stopping  on  the  way  at  Trevino 
and  Sabinas.  This  route  was  more  entertaining  than 
any  I  had  seen  in  Mexico.  There  was  a  continued 
succession  oi  mountain  ranges  and  broad  valleys, 
many  of  which  were  in  cultivation,  and  new  forms 
of  the  cactus  trees  apjx'ared;  the  most  beautiful,  the 
Palf  cactus,  which  grows  twenty  to  thirty  feet  high, 
crowned  with  a  dome  of  beautiful  flowers,  with  long 
pendajit  fronds,  that  like  the  aspen  trees  were  always 
in  motion,  swayed  by  the  slightest  breeze. 

Between  Trevino  and  Sabinas  an  incident  oc- 
curred that  gives  a  glimpse  of  Mexican  life  in  one 
particular  form.  A  desperado  and  a  companion  had 
committed  a  crime  uj)  towards  Sabinas  and  fled  to 
the  mountains  southward,  aiming  to  reach  a  certain 
]:)ass  befc>re  being  intercepted;  the  road  ran  within 
a  mile  or  less  of  the  pass.  As  we  neared  it  the  trail 
came  around  a  foothill  in  sight  of  the  railroad.     AVhen 


OF    ADDISON    OOFFIN.  225 

in  a  favorable  position  the  train  stoppeti  and  two 
Mexican  otMeei's,  the  conductor,  and  others,  were 
eagerly  scanning  the  trail.  1  knew  nothing  of  the 
matter  up  to  this  time,  but  through  curiosity  I  leveled 
my  glass  in  that  direction,  and  saw  two  horsemen 
coming  down  in  view.  Suspecting-  something  was 
up,  I  handed  the  conductor  my  glass,  who  looked 
and  excitedly  handed  it  to  the  oldest  officer,  and 
when  he  looked  he  almost  dropped  the  glass  as  h^e 
returned  it.  Instantly  the  signal  was  given;  the 
train  ran  backward  at  high  speed  to  near  the  pass. 
Before  it  was  still  the  officers  leaped  to  the  ground; 
the  older  ran  like  a  greyhound  for  the  pass,  the 
younger  one  for  the  nearest  point  on  the  trail  where 
it  crossed  a  deep  gully.  In  the  meantime  the  horse- 
men had  taken  akrm  and  spurred  their  horses  to 
full  speed.  The  race  now  became  exciting,  but  seem- 
ingly just  in  the  nick  of  time  the  young  officer  reached 
the  gully  and  planted  himself  by  a  large  rcM3k  and 
opened  fire  at  tolerably  short  range.  The  horsemen 
dashed  down  the  gully,  which  was  dry,  and  still 
made  for  the  pass,  but  the  young  man  made  a  bee 
line  for  the  pass,  shouting  to  his  partner.  In  a  little 
time  the  riders  emerged  from  the  ravine  only  to 
find  themselves  cut  off,  and  between  two  fires.  They 
also  began  firing  rapidly,  and  soon  one  reeled  and 
swayed  in  his  saddle,  then  recovered  himself,  and  both 


226  LIFE    AND    ThAYELS 

dashed  down  the  side  of  the  mountain,  followed  by 
the  voung  officer,  while  the  other  held  the  pass.  The 
battle  seemed  to  be  over  and  the  train  moved  on  to 
make  up  lost  time,  but  my  field  glass  was  quite  pop- 
ular the  rest  of  the  journey,  for  it  had  the  credit 
of  giving  the  officer  the  advantage  in  the  adventure. 
How^  the  chase  finallv  ended  I  never  knew. 

Eaerle  Pass  is  the  point  where  the  Mexican  Cen- 
tral Railroad  crosses  the  Rio  Grande  into  Texas, 
and  then  joins  the  Southera  Pacific  at  Spoferd  Junc- 
tion. I  arrived  at  the  junction  in  the  early  morn- 
ing, and  had  to  wait  a  few^  hours  for  the  train  from 
the  Pacific  coast.  When  it  came  I  was  surprised  to 
see  one  of  my  friends  from  Indiana  step  oif  the  train 
to  look  at  the  town.  I  had  parted  from  him  a  month 
before  in  California;  he  was  then  going  north  to- 
wards Washington  and  British  Columbia,  while  I  was 
going  in  the  opposite  direction.  He  had  made  his 
far  northern  trip  and  I  my  southern,  and  botli  were 
beginning  to  be  homesick  and  were  working  home- 
ward. We  traveled  together  to  Kew  Orleans,  then 
separated,  and  a  month  later  met  in  Indianapolis 
again.  We  were  Americans,  and  this  shows  what  a 
Avandering  propensity  we  have;  my  friend,  like  my- 
self, had  the  warm  Carolina  blood  in  his  veins. 

The  journey  across  SraitheiTi  Texas  was  not  in- 
teresting; the  country  is  nearly  a  uniform  level  i)lain. 


OF    ADDISON    (;OFFIN.  '227 

iiiiicb  of  it  covered  with  soj'iib  timber  or  wide  prairies, 
ill  places  well  cultivated,  in  others  lying  waste  with- 
out inliabitants.  It  is  much  the  same  with  Southern 
Louisiana;  the  coast  is  low  and  swampy,  monotonous 
and  dreary  looking.  The  few  splendid  farms  we 
passed  only  intensified  the  dreariness  of  the  marsh- 
land. My  stop  in  Xew  Orleans  was  short,  a  state- 
ment of  which  is  given  in  connection  wdth  my  first 
visit  m  1844.  Jlj  homeward  trip  w^as  by  way  of 
Jackson  and  Meredith,  Miss.;  Birmingham,  Ala.; 
Chattanooga,  Tenn. ;  Cincinnati,  Ohio,  and  Indian- 
apolis, Indiana.  I  started  southwest,  returned  from 
tlie  east,  having  traveled  nearly  12,000  miles,  and 
been  from  home  a  little  over  four  months.  It  would 
fill  many  books  to  describe  all  that  w^as  seen,  heard 
and  endured.  There  were  many  mountain  scenes  so 
grand  and  l)eautiful,  with  historic  events  associated 
with  them,  that  it  would  take  much  time  and  space 
to  do  them  justice.  There  were  land  slides  where 
whole  sides  of  mountains  had  given  w^ay  and  gone 
to  the  valley,  thus  changing  local  conditions;  cloud 
bursts  had  occuiTed  on  the  mountains,  producing 
floods  in  the  canyons  that  carried  stones  and  bowlders 
down  to  the  valley  and  on  the  plain  in  size  and 
quantity  almost  past  belief.  The  bursting  of  reser- 
voirs, breaking  of  lake  barriers,  wnth  attending  flood 
and  ruin;  the  wonderful  achievements,  the  toil,  risk 


228  LIFE    AND    TRAVELS 

and  danger  encountered  and  overcome  by  the  freight- 
ers before  the  railroad  was  built;  the  thrilling  events 
in  the  early  mining  camps  when  lynch  law  was  the 
only  standard  of  justice;  the  battles  with  the  mur- 
derous Apache  and  other  Indians;  the  sudden  rise 
of  penniless  prospectors  to  great  wealth,  and  falls  from 
wealth  to  want.  All  these  subjects  would  each  fill 
a  book  that  would  be  stranger  than  fiction,  and  take 
the  reader  back  to  living  scenes  which  will  soon  be 
forgotten  and  lost  to  history.  There  was  not  a  day 
during  the  long  trip  but  some  new  discovery  was 
made,  some  new  historical  event  learned,  some  new 
departure  from  conventional  lines  that  aroused  old 
time  prejudice  ^and  crystalized  nations. 


CHAPTER  EIGHT. 


Visit  to  the  Old  Home  in  North  Carolina — Winter 
of  1890  and  1891  Spent  at  Guilford  College— 
Again  in  1892,  '93  and  '94 — Excursion  to  Oregon 
— Oregon  Yearly  Meeting — Excursion  to  Colum- 
bia— Trip  to  British  Columbia — Visit  to  My  Son 
and  Carson  City — The  Outing  on  the  Lake  and  on 
the  Mountains — Yellowstone  National  Park — Ee- 
turn  Home  via  Kansas  and  World's  Fair. 

There  was  not  a  day  or  an  hour  that  I  did  not 
feel  the  hand  of  the  Lord  upholding  me  in  my  jour- 
ney, nor  did  I  for  a  moment  lose  the  assurance  in 
my  heart  that  I  would  return  safely  to  my  home. 

As  before,  my  neighbors  and  friends  w^anted  me 
to  give  them  the  benefit  of  my  observations  in  my 
journey,  which  I  did  in  public  talks  and  at  private 
socials.  Those  especially  interested  were  the  young 
farmers  and  fruit  gi'owers,  who  wished  to  know  my 
judgment  as  to  where  they  should  go  to  settle  for 
life.     To  thi«  class  I  felt  under  obligations,  for  they 

15  (229:^ 


230  LIFE    AND    TRAVELS 

were  earnest  in  their  inquiries  and  anxious  to  know 
the  possibilities  and  capabilities  of  the  wide  region 
over  which  I  had  passed.  My  gift  of  discerning  the 
ability  of  men  had  increased  by  use.  I  had  learned 
how  to  direct  men  by  understanding  their  tempera- 
ment. So  I  would  tell  some  to  go  to  the  new  north- 
west, the  Dacotahs  and  Montana,  and  the  great  wheat 
field;  others  to  the  fruit  regions  of  Oregon  and 
Washington;  still  others  to  the  two  extremes  of  Cal- 
ifornia, north  and  south.  But  those  who  had  the 
mind  and  will  to  look  farther  ahead  were  directed 
to  the  arid  regions  of  the  great  plains,  where  irriga- 
tion would  soon  transform  the  desert  into  a  j^aradise 
of  beauty  and  productiveness. 

In  1890  T  went  back  to  my  old  home  in  North 
Carolina  to  atten<l  Fnends'  Yearly  Meeting;  the  time 
of  holding  it  had  been  changed  from  November  to 
August.  Several  years  had  passed  since  I  had  at- 
tended this  annual  gathering,  and  the  reunion  with 
old  friends  and  the  associations  of  the  scenes  of  my 
youth  was  very  enjoyable;  and  the  many  rehearsals 
of  adventures  through  which  I  had  passed  made 
our  socials  bright  and  happy  opportunities.  A  month 
or  more  was  s]>ent  in  visiting  around  New  Grarden, 
then  I  returned  home.  My  friends  were  united  in 
remarking  that  my  health  had  improved  (for  I  was 
still  an  invalid)   and  I  felt  that  it  was  true,  for  I 


OF    ADDISON    COFFIN.  231 

realized  that  mj  native  air  was  what  I  needed;  so 
it  became  a  settled  fact  that  at  the  beginning  of 
winter  I  should  return  to  Guilford  College  for  the 
season  of  1890-91.  The  mild  climate,  the  kindly  as- 
sociation with  old  friends  and  contact  with  the  bright 
young  life  of  the  students,  was  like  the  renewing  of 
wasted  energy  by  sweet  rest. 

It  may  .be  well  to  finish  the  history  of  home 
travel  before  going  abroad,  so  the  whole  subject  may 
be  connectedly  understood.  As  I  still  improved  by 
going  south,  the  winters  of  1891-92,  1893-94  and 
1891-95  were  spent  at  Guilford  College.  Local  trips 
were  taken  while  there  to  Wilmington,  on  the  coast, 
and  into  South  Carolina,  to  a  fish  exhibit  at  Xewbem, 
and  to  the  mountains,  etc.,  etc. 

The  Friends  in  Oregon  had  petitioned  Iowa 
Yearly  Meeting  for  the  privilege  of  holding  a  Yeariy 
Meeting  of  their  own  at  ]N"ewberg,  in  that  state. 
Their  request  was  granted,  and  it  was  announced  that 
the  new  meeting  would  be  held  June  26th,  1893. 
To  meet  the  wants  of  many  Friends  who  wished  to 
go  to  Oregon,  I  organized  an  excursion  party  for  the 
occasion.  "W  e  started  from  Chicago  and  went  through 
in  a  tourist  sleeping  car  over  the  Union  Pacific  and 
Oregon  Short  Line  Railroads.  The  trip  was  success- 
ful and  delightful;  as  I  had  been  over  the  route  be- 
fore, the  various  points  of  interest  were  noted  and 


232  LIFE    AND    TRAVELS 

Others  not  seen  before  admired  and  commented  on. 
The  volcanic  reaion  of  Snake  river  was  a  wonder  to 
all,  and  additionally  so  to  me,  for  new  things  were 
constantly  presenting  themselves.  The  crossing  of 
the  Snake  river  mountains,  the  run  down  the  Co- 
lumbia river,  the  splendid  vi-ew  of  Mt.  Hood,  the 
Dalles,  Multnoma  Falls,  the  Palisades  of  the  Colum- 
bia, were  all  seen  and  enjoyed  by  the  party.  To  them 
the  trip  was  almost  like  an  enchanting  dream  or  start- 
ling vision. 

At  Portland  we  were  met  by  friends  who  had 
made  hotel  and  other  arrangements  for  us,  and  the 
next  day  we  ran  out  twentv-two  miles  to  x^ewberg, 
the  point  of  destination.  As  it  frequently  happens, 
I  was  surprised  to  find  so  many  I  knew.  Some  were 
my  old  neighbors  and  their  children  from  North  Car j- 
lina,  and  many  more  from  Indiana,  who,  together 
with  acquaintances  from  other  places,  made  up  most 
of  the  people  of  the  town.  When  the  meeting  con- 
vened, I  was  still  more  surprised  to  find  a  large 
majonty  of  those  in  attendance  were  persons  I  had 
met  in  the  eastern  states.  The  meeting  lasted  six 
days,  and  was  one  continued  happy  reunion.  Many 
had  not  met  for  periods  of  from  five  to  thirty  years, 
and  almost  eveiw  vicissitude  of  real  life  had  been  seen 
and  suffered,  and  I  am  glad  to  say  that  many,  like 
myself,  had  reached  the  glad  season  of  rest  when  the 
dav's  work  was  done. 


OF    ADDISON    COFFIN.  233 

One  of  the  party  was  a  kinswoman  of  mine 
from  JS'orth  Carolina.  She  was  in  poor  health,  but 
was  greatly  benefited  by  the  journey  across  the  moun- 
tains, and  much  interested  in  all  that  we  saw.  My 
nephew  and  other  friends  took  us  over  the  hills  and 
through  the  splendid  prune  orchards,  that  we  might 
better  understand  the  marvelous  production  of  the 
Willamette  Valley  in  apples,  prunes,  plums,  cherries, 
pears  and  all  small  fruits.  The  owmer  of  a  fourteen- 
year-old  prune  orchard  was  offered  $800  per  acre  for 
the  fruit  on  the  trees,  but  did  not  sell,  for  he  could 
make  more  by  drying  and  packing  it  himself.  For 
a  nine-year-old  orchard,  $600  per  acre  was  offered. 

On  one  of  the  prune  farms  near  N^ewberg,  an 
Oregon  pine  tree  was  trimmed  to  the  top  and  sawed 
off  where  it  was  four  inches  in  diameter,  120  feet 
from  the  ground.  T'o  show  his  skill  in  climbing  and 
pnming,  the  man  balanced  himself  horizontally  on 
that  four-inch  top,  then  came  down  in  safety.  A 
tree  trimmed  in  that  way  the  right  time  of  year  will 
dry  and  keep  a  whole  generation. 

At  the  close  of  the  Yearly  Meeting  a  grand 
steamboat,  Fourth  of  July  excursion  was  arranged 
to  go  to  Multnoma  Falls,  120  miles  up  the  Colum- 
bia. There  were  nearly  850  in  the  excursion,  and 
it  proved  a  very  interesting  trip.  While  we  were 
coming  back  it  was  proposed  that  a  minister  should 


284  LIFE    AND    TRAVELS 

preacli  a  sermon  at  the  bow,  and  that  I  talk  at  the 
stern  on  the  Land  of  the  Midnight  Snn;  this  was 
done.  A  humorous  minister  reported  in  Indiana 
that  I  delivered  an  address  that  was  heard  distinctly 
for  twenty  miles,  but  without  explaining  that  the 
boat  went  twenty  miles  down  stream  while  I  was 
speaking. 

When  the  steamer  stopped  at  Portland  to  let  off 
passengers,  I  felt  a  sudden  impulse  to  land  and  go 
north  to  British  Columbia,  and  my  invalid  me<ie 
wanted  to  go  also,  declaring  that  she  Avas  strong 
enough  for  the  trip.  We  stayed  over  night  in  the 
city  and  started  in  the  early  morning;  ran  down  the 
Columbia,  on  the  west  side,  to  Groble,  where  there  is 
a  fenw  boat,  the  next  to  the  largest  in  the  world,  the 
one  at  Benecia  and  Port  Costa,  California,  being  the 
largest.  Here  the  passenger  and  freight  trains  are 
feiTied  across  without  jolt  or  jar,  and  it  is  a  wonder- 
ful sight  to  see  the  huge  ferry-boat  propelled  across 
the  rapid  current  of  the  great  river,  and  then  glide 
into  port  and  unload  on  the  rails.  It  surpassed  any- 
thing of  the  kind  seen  in  Europe,  nor  is  there  a 
river  in  that  grand  division  to  compare  with  the  Co- 
lumbia. From  Kalama,  on  the  "Washington  side,  we 
sped  away  through  the  lowlands  and  immense  forests, 
where  the  lumbermen  are  spreading  destruction  on 
ever\'  side,  and  \vi\]  soon  have  one  of  the  world's  great- 


OF    ADDISON    COFFIN.  235 

est  forests  obliterated.  It  is  in  Western  WasHngton 
that  we  see  taller  forests  and  longer  timbers  handled 
thah  any^'here  else;  the  largest  I  ever  saw  was  125 
feet  long  and  three  feet  square.  I  have  seen  whole 
forests  that  were  300  feet  high,  but  that  was  the 
largest  solid,  sawed  stick  that  I  saw.  There  is  much 
uniformitv  in  the  lay  of  the  land  until  we  reach 
Olympia,  the  present  capitol  of  Washington;  then 
begins  the  beautiful  lake-like  country,  alternating 
with  forests,  farms  and  low  marsh  lands. 

At  Tacoma  we  took  steamer  for  Victoria,  B.  C, 
and  almost  as  soon  as  we  steamed  out  from  land  the 
unsurpassed  beauty  of  Puget's  Sound  began  to  un- 
fold. Though  I  had  read  of  its  picturesque  waters, 
the  scene  before  me  surpassed  all  expectations.  Tbe 
next  inspiring  object  that  came  to  view  is  Mt.  Ranier, 
which  rises  1,400  feet  above  the  horizon,  glittering 
in  the  sunlight,  with  cleft  summit  where  once  its 
crater  ndowed  with  fervent  heat,  now  covered  with 
perpetual  snow.  The  dazzling  white,  as  seen  from 
the  boat,  is  in  vivid  contrast  to  the  dark  green  forest 
•that  is  at  its  base.  As  we  wound  among  the  manv 
islands  and  rounded  the  promontories,  the  scene  was 
ever  changing  and  always  charming  and  beautiful. 
We  were  so  absorbed  in  watching  the  green  forests 
as  they  passed — for  they  came  down  to  the  water's 
edge,  and  were  here  and  there  broken  by  a  prosper- 


236  LIFE    AND    TRAVELS 

ous  settlement,  with  green  fields,  orchards  and  hop 
fields — that  we  did  not  notice  two  other  snowy  sum- 
mits till  they  seemed  to  rise  suddenly  to  the  east- 
ward, emitting  a  crimson  light  from  their  crowns 
of  snow  as  if  illumined  by  a  brilliant  sunset.  The 
waters  of  the  sound  increased  in  beautv,  and  the 
bright  sunlight  seemed  to  fall  softly  over  forest, 
islands  and  the  gleaming  waters  around  us;  we  felt 
conscious  that  we  were  advancing  northward,  where 
the  days  are  longer.  While  we  were  enjoving  all 
this,  far  to  the  north  Mt.  Baker  began  to  rise  from 
the  mountain  range  and  its  white  cap  shown  like 
molten  silver;  and  so  the  picture  enlarged  more  and 
more.  We  finally  turned  from  the  enchanting  view 
and  looked  westward  towards  Mt.  Baker,  and  we 
were  almost  struck  dumb  with  astonishment  at  the 
finishing  touch  to  this  magnificent  panorama.  To 
the  west  lay  the  Olympian  mountains,  like  vast  snow 
fields,  and  we  st<x>d  amazed  at  the  dazzling  scene, 
for  we  seemed  to  be  in  fairy  land  instead  of  the 
far  off,  almost  unknown,  uninteresting  Puget  Sound 
region.  In  all  my  travels  over  our  broad  land,  in 
Bible  land  and  in  Europe,  I  had  seen  much  water 
scenery,  but  the  most  beautiful  that  I  ever  beheld 
is  Puget  Sound  and  its  surroundings. 

We  landed  in  Victoria  in  the  afternoon;  after 
procuring  rooms  we  started  out  to  see  the  strange  city 


OF    ADDISON    COFFIN.  237 

with  its  foreign  population.  Everything — the  houses, 
the  business,  the  goods  and  merchandise  and  voice 
of  the  people — indicated  that  we  were  in  the  northern 
latitude,  where  the  extremes  of  light  and  darkness, 
heat  and  cold,  were  great  and  vitality,  though  strong 
and  enduring,  was  more  sluggish  than  in  the  south- 
land. 

The  next  day  we  visited  a  large  Joss  house,  or 
Chinese  temple,  and  saw  all  their  hideous  images  used 
in  their  religious  ceremonies;  we  then  went  to  the 
cathedral  and  the  new  Methodist  church,  then  t(X)k 
the  street  car  and  rode  out  five  miles  to  a  fashion- 
able resort  on  a  beautiful  land-locked  and  rock-bound 
bay,  with  shell  beach  and  curiously  honey-combed 
rocks.  On  our  return  to  the  city,  we  went  out 
seven  miles  to  where  a  large,  iron-clad  man-of-war 
was  nding  at  anchor.  When  we  came  back  young 
Ballington  Booth  was  holding  an  out-door  meeting, 
so  we  mingled  with  the  many  thousands  for  an  hour 
to  hear  his  eloquence  and  matchless  power  of  holding 
a  vast  multitude. 

We  tinally  repaired  to  our  hotel  tired,  but  well 
pleased  with  our  day's  work;  the  sun  had  set  about 
9  p.  m.,  and  we  could  see  to  read  until  nearly  10 
p.  m.  By  the  calendar,  there  were  four  more  hours' 
sunshine  the  7th  of  July  than  at  Greensboro,  N. 
C,  the  same  day.      The  trip  down  the  Sound  gave 


238  LIFE    AND    TRAVELS 

US  a  view  of  the  other  side,  with  new  groupings  of 
mountains,  isknds,  and  shores,  that  finished  the  grand 
picture. 

When  we  returned  to  Newberg,  Oregon,  I  found 
a  dispatch  from  my  son  at  Carson  City,  stating  that 
he  haxl  business  in  San  Francisco  at  a  given  date, 
and  he  would  hke  me  to  come  to  that  city  and  return 
with  him.  This  changed  the  original  program,  and 
1  shortened  m^^  stay  at  Newberg  and  started  south 
by  rail,  leaving  my  niece  to  follow  later  on.  The 
railroad  connecting  Portland  and  Sacrameiito  had 
been  complete<l  since  I  passed  througli  Oregon  be- 
fore; it  opened  up  one  of  the  finest  mountain  regions 
(n  any  country,  and  one  possessing  peculiar  and  dis- 
tinctive grandeur  of  scenery.  The  route  passes  up 
the  Willamette  Valley,  betw^een  the  coast  range  and 
the  (cascade  or  Sierra  Nevada  range  of  mountains, 
vith  two  cross-cut  ranges  thrown  across  the  great 
t^alley  by  more  rec:ent  volcanic  action  like  the  Te- 
hichipa  range  in  Southern  California,  and  on  one  of 
the  cross-cut  ranges  is  another  celebrated  railroad 
h)0}),  e(|ual  in  engineering  skill  to  Tehichipa.  Be- 
tween these  short  ranges  are  twc>  very  beautiful 
valleys,  the  Rogue  and  C/hemath  rivers,  and  so  grand 
that  the  eye  never  grows  wearv  of  watching  the  ever- 
t  hanging  picturevS. 

Mount   Shasta   and  its   immediate   surroundings 


OF    ADDISON    COFFIN.  239 

is  the  finest  moinitain  scenery  that  is  accessible  in 
North  America.  Its  summit  is  cleft  from  north  to 
south  \)\  three  immense  chasms,  the  central  one  a 
thousand  feet  deep,  which  is  sloAvly  filling  up  with 
snow.  At  noon  Avhen  the  sun  shines  down  into  the 
great  chasms  the  scene  is  so  dazzling  that  the  eye 
can  scarcely  bear  the  intense,  reflected  light ;  its  base, 
like  Mount  Ranier,  is  clothed  with  pine  forests,  which 
intensifies  the  gloom  from  the  pei*petual  fields  of 
snow.  In  all  the  region  around  Mount  Shasta  there 
have  been  fearful  convulsions  in  the  past;  rivers 
have  been  turned  out  of  their  courses,  lakes  have  been 
formed  and  old  ones  emptied.  It  looks  as  if  the 
m(>untains  had  been  made  to  skip  ^^like  rams,  and 
the  little  hills  like  lambs."  We  passed  out  of  the 
mountain  ranges  into  the  head  of  the  Sacramento 
Valley,  and  came  to  a  fountain  of  almost  pure  soda 
water.  It  issues  out  of  the  cavern  by  thousands  of 
gallons  hourly;  the  rock  is  considerably  worn  away, 
showing  that  it  has  been  running  for  ages.  The 
railroad  company  has  constructe<:l  a  fine  drinking 
fountain ;  the  trains  stop  and  all  t^ke  a  drink.  Those 
who  take  the  trip  a  second  nrae  provide  tlicmselves 
with  sugar,  for  that  makes  it  perfect:  ]u?t  why  no 
one  knows. 

The   whole   Sacramento  Valley  is   a   marvel    of 
rural  Wauty.  and   where  it  has  been  improved,  ])re- 


240  LIFE    AND    TRAVELS 

sente  a  luxuriance  that  fills  the  beholder  ^vitli  en- 
thusiastic delight,  and  yet  the  development  is  in  its 
infancy.  In  a  few  years,  when  the  orchards  and  vine- 
yards have  grown,  the  whole  \^alley  ^viil  be  a  won- 
der in  productiveness.  There  will  always  be  an  abun- 
dance of  water  in  that  valley. 

My  son  met  me  in  San  Francisco  as  arranged, 
and  the  next  morning  we  started  for  his  home,  ar- 
rived same  day  and  had  a  hearty  greeting  from  the 
family,  especially  from  the  little  ones.  They  had 
planned  a  vacation  in  the  mountains  when  I  should 
get  there,  so  in  a  day  or  two  we  set  out  for  Lake 
Tahoe,  and  crossed  over  to  a  summer  resort  on  the 
west  side  within  two  miles  of  the  nearest  snow  field. 
It  was  a  delightful  place,  with  all  the  mountain  climl)- 
ing  that  could  be  desired.  My  son  immediately 
telegraphed  to  Portland,  Oregon,  for  my  nieces  to 
come,  and  at  the  right  time  I  crossed  the  lake  to 
Tahoe  City,  there  took  hack  and  went  to  Trukee^ 
on  main  line  of  Central  Pacific  Railroad  to  inter- 
cept her  so  as  to  save  the  going  around  by  Carson 
City.  Everything  went  as  smooth  as  clock  work; 
she  left  the  train  and  we  returned  over  the  romantic 
route  up  the  Trukee  river,  which  abounds  in  pictur- 
esque scenes,  and  could  one  have  the  history  of  the 
lumber  men  and  pioneers,  it  would  make  an  inter- 
eresting  narrative.      At  Tahoe  City  we  took  a  boat  and 


OF    ADDISON    COFFIN.  241 

re-cross(Hl  the  lake  to  the  rendezvons,  where  there  was 
a  happy  reunion  of  the  cousins. 

Then  began  a  seides  of  tramps  over  the  hills^ 
through  immense  forests  of  pine,  cedai%  redw^ood  and 
other  timber,  hunting  the  beautiful  snow^  plant  which 
is  found  nowhere  else,  fishing  on  the  lake,  or  taking 
a  tour  around  the  lake  in  a  steamer,  Adsiting  some 
remarkable  bays  and  inlets,  where  nature  seems  to 
have  done  its  best  to  unite  the  romantic  and  the 
beautiful.  The  crowning  wonder  w^as  a  trip  on  foot 
of  eleven  miles  to  a  new  discovery  called  Rubicon 
Springs.  The  w^ay  led  through  one  of  the  most  ter- 
ribly desolate  mountains  on  the  continent.  Our  first 
view  was  from  a  cliff  two  or  three  thousand  feet 
high;  below  us  lay  a  narrow-  valley,  through  w-hich 
ran  the  Rubicon  river,  5000  feet  below  the  place 
where  we  stood.  The  valley  and  gorge  ran  north- 
west beyond  the  view;  the  opposite  mountain  range 
was  naked  granite  rock,  bald  and  desolate.  Earth- 
quake power  had  shivered  the  whole  range  into  frag- 
ments; as  far  as  the  glass  could  reach  there  was  not 
a  square  acre  of  rock  that  had  not  be-en  shattered, 
seamed  and  broken.  In  places  whole  cubic  acres 
of  rock  had  been  hurled  into  the-  valley,  where  they 
lay  in  fragments;  great  bowlders  had  been  tossed 
{ibout  like  foot-balls.  To  the  southeast  the  head 
of  the  great,  gorge  was  closed  by  .lofty  summits,  cov- 


242  LIFE    AND    TRAVELS 

ered  with  many  square  miles  of  perpetual  snow  fields, 
which,  with  rooky  desolation,  finished  the  picture, 
easier  remembered  than  described. 

Within  four  years  the  way  had  been  made  to 
and  down  to  the  bottom  of  the  valley;  fii-st  a  pack 
horse  trail,  then  a  cart  way  had  been  opened,  and 
a  rude  hotel  built,  the  dooi*s  and  windows  of  which 
were  carried  to  the  valley  on  horses.  At  one  point 
there  were  several  mineral  springs,  among  them  a 
soda  water  spring  like  the  great  fountain  at  the  head 
of  the  Sacramento  river.  High  up  near  the  snow 
fields  is  Lone  Lake,  covering  several  hundred  acres; 
it  is  rather  difiicult  of  access.  One  afternoon  a  trip 
was  made  to  it,  the  ladies  on  horseback  and  the  men 
afoot;  though  a  long,  tiresome  climb,  it  rewarded 
all  the  labor,  for  it  brought  us  up  nearer  to  and  on 
a  level  with  the  snow,  which  was  refiected  in  the 
placid  watei*s  as  distinctly  as  in  a  glass.  All  was  sil- 
ent and  peaceful ;  the  bright  sunlight,  the  rarified 
air  united  to  make  it  a  deeply-interesting  place.  But 
little  conscious  life  ever  visited  that  spot,  except  a 
few  wild  fowl  in  their  migrations.  A  few  large  pine 
trees  stood  in  lone  grandeur  in  a  cove  at  the  west  end. 

Ten  miles  below  the  hotel  is  a  place  called  Hell 
Hole,  which  is  inaccessible  to  all  except  strong,  ac- 
tive men,  and  they  need  to  be  brave  and  of  good 
nerve.     It  is  the  winter  quarters  of  rattlesnakes,  and 


OF    ADDISON    COFFIN.  243 

th€  danger  of  eiiteniig  tlie  detip  cove,  together  with 
the  overpowering  stench,  is  enough  to  deter  most 
men.  Two  hardy  huntei*s  ventured  in  to  collect  rat- 
tles for  t-ourists,  but  ere  thev  had  killed  forty  they 
were  overcome  by  the  foul  air  and  with  difficjulty 
escaped  from  the  horrible  pit. 

The  river  abounded  in  tine  mountain  trout,  and 
some  of  the  party  could  not  resist  the  temptation  to 
fish,  so  we  had  plenty  of  fresh  trout  during  our  stay. 
The  return  was  made  in  a  hack  drawn  by  four  horses, 
and  the  scenes  from  many  of  the  tui-ns  were  new  reve- 
lations; and  as  we  looked  up  to  the  overhanging  cliffs 
and  saw^  the  foot  path  we  had  descended,  we  could 
hardly  realize  the  fact;  but  everything  was  so  exciting 
and  new  as  we  pas&ed  over  it  that  we  forgot  all 
danger,  though  I  did  remember  sitting  down  on  the 
loose  stones  and  sliding  several  feet  before  halting 
against  a  large  bowlder.  The  cartway  itself  was  a 
inai-^^el,  for  it  seemed  impossible  for  a  way  to  have 
been  found  down  such  cliffs,  but  the  grade,  though 
steep  and  circuitous,  was  practicable,  but  hard  on 
horse  and  vehicle.  We  all  enjoyed  the  coming  back 
to  the  lake,  for  it  w^^as  as  though  w^e  had  been  to  a 
wonderful  artificial  show,  so  new  and  different  from 
all  past  experience;  it  took  some  time  to  fix  the  picture 
and  feel  that  it  was  natural  and  real.  We  voted 
unanimously  that  Rubicon  Sprin^-s  would  become  a 
famous  resort  in  the  near  future. 


244  LIFE    AND    travels" 

At  the  end  of  ten  days  we  retnriied  to  Carson 
City,  and  among  the  places  visited  was  the  prison 
yard  for  another  look  at  the  pre-histoi*ic  footprints, 
but  sad  to  relate,  they  had  nearly  all  been  destroyed 
by  the  increased  work  in  quarrying  the  building 
stone.  My  favorite  mountain  peak  still  stood  in  sil- 
ent grandeur,  looking  down  on  the  city,  the  clear 
mountain  blue  being  sharply  defined. 

Time  was  going  on,  the  season  advancing,  and 
we  had  to  turn  homeward,  for  the  progTam  was  not 
half  completed;  the  Yellowstone  Park  was  yet  to 
be  visited  and  the  World's  Fair  at  Chicago  to  be 
seen,  a  brother  in  Kansas  called  on,  and  other  inci- 
dental intervenings.  My  son  and  his  family  accom- 
panied us  to  Reno,  where  we  visited  a  niece  who 
was  then  residing  in  that  city.  After  a  pleasant 
stop  there,  we  fiually  bid  good-bye  and  started  east- 
ward toward  Ogden,  in  Utah;  as  we  passed  the  Hum- 
boldt desert  in  the  night,  much  of  the  heat  and 
dust  was  avoided.  When  w©  came  into  the  Mor- 
mon settlements  in  Utah,  it  was  a  great  relief  to  the 
eye  to  see  beautiful  PTeen  fields,  orchards  and  groves, 
and  a  striking  contrast  to  the  blistering  sand. 

To  economize  time  from  Ogden,  we  ran  down 
t-o  Salt  Lake  City  and  si)ent  a  day  in  seeing  it.  We 
went  to  the  temple,  tabernacle,  bee  hive,  grave  of 
Brigham    Young,   and   then   out  to  Garfield    Lake, 


OF    ADDISON    COFFIN.  245 

where  we  tested  the  density  of  the  water  as  com- 
pared to  the  Dead  Sea,  and  found  it  the  denser  of  the 
two.  We  returned  to  Ogden,  took  the  train  on  the 
Utah  Northern  Railroad  for  Beaver  canyon,  the  point 
opposite  the  park,  though  ninety-five  miles  away, 
which  proved  to  he  a  small,  dirty,  mean  place;  so 
the  trip  tc>  the  park  on  that  line  is  to  the  ordinary 
tourist  a  swindle,  but  if  one  is  posted  in  the  history 
of  the  fur  trade  and  early  explorations,  it  is  an  in- 
teresting route. 

Starting  from  Beaver  canyon  in  a  very  p(x>r  hack, 
with  inferior  horses  but  a  good,  reliable  driver,  our 
route  lay  nearly  east,  the  first  half  of  the  day  over 
a  wide  plain,  with  mountains  to  the  north  and  in 
front.  As  the  day  advanced  the  mountains  loomed 
up  dark  and  frowning,  and  interest  increased;  the 
whole  region  was  almost  unoccupied  by  people  of 
any  color — the  Indian  was  gone  and  the  whites  had 
not  yet  come.  The  wolf  went  across  the  trail,  the 
sage  hens  flew  away  in  large  flocks,  the  antelope 
could  be  seen  afar,  while  the  driver  related  exciting 
stories  associated  mth  the  various  points.  In  the 
afternoon  we  entered  the  mountains  through  a  gap, 
and  came  into  the  singularly  beautiful  Antelope 
valley;  it  lies  between  two  ranges  and  extends  through 
a  gap  on  a  line  for  fifteen  miles,  when  it  suddenly 
ends  in  Henry  Lake  meadow,  which  is  south  of  the 

16 


246  LIFE    AND    TRAVELS 

lake  and  once  a  part  of  it.  It  was  around  tins  lake  that 
many  of  the  stin-ing  events  of  the  fur  trade  transpired. 
Xear  it  Mr.  Stuart,  on  his  return  from  Astoria  in 
1813  or  '14,  encountered  the  hostile  Indians;  on  its 
eastern  shore  General  Howard  fought  the  last  bat- 
tle with  the  independent,  unsubdued  tribe  of  Indians, 
the  Xez  Perces,  and  some  refuge  Sheshones,  and  there 
the  last  independent  chief,  Tyhee,  lost  his  life  when 
the  last  stand  was  made. 

We  spent  the  night  at  the  celebrated  log  cabin 
hotel,  a  rendezvous  for  hunters,  amid  dogs,  goats  and 
great  numbers  of  prepared  skins  and  mounted  birds, 
which  were  to  be  taken  to  the  park  for  sale;  the  only 
desirable  thing  was  fresh  mountain  trout,  caught 
out  of  the  headwaters  of  the  Snake  river  near  by. 
The  old  Belgian  landlord  was  erecting  a  fine  hot-el 
in  anticipation  of  coming  events.  Soon  after  leav- 
ing Henry  Lake  we  entered  the  pass  now  called 
Tyhee,  after  the  old  chief;  we  went  through  the  bat- 
tle ground,  which  was  well  chosen,  just  out  of  the 
range  of  the  stockade.  On  one  of  the  head  streams 
of  Snake  river,  at  the  summit  of  the  pass,  there  is 
a  fine  spring  that  sends  its  waters  to  the  Pacific,  a 
hundred  yards  further  we  stood  on  the  Continental 
Divide,  and  two  lumdred  yards  l>eyond  a  spring 
sends  its  watei-s  thi*ough  Madison  river  to  the  Gulf 
of  ]\rexico.      This  Avas  <»n  the  northwest  side  of  the 


OF    ADDISON    C(^FFIN.  247 

great  central  headwater  rei>ion  of  nearly  all  our 
great  rivers,  as  mentioned  in  a  former  chapter,  and 
it  was  a  triumph  in  life  to  reach  that  spot,  nearly 
8000  feet  above  the  sea. 

Onr  nooning  place  tlie  second  day  was  on  the 
south  fork  of  Madison  river,  in  a  romantic  house, 
which  was  lined  and  almost  full  of  valuable  skins,  fur, 
mounted  birds,  deer  and  elk  horns  and  rare  fossils; 
it  was  kept  by  a  singularly  interesting  bachelor  hun- 
ter and  cattleman.  He  was  in  middle  life,  and  had 
left  Pennsylvania  and  Ohio  ^^^th  a  set-ret  locked  up 
in  his  heart,  and  had  hid  himself  in  that  lone,  wild 
region.  While  showing  his  trophies  to  my  nieces, 
the  poor  fellow  suifered  the  door  to  his  inner  life 
to  open  for  a  moment,  and  in  that  time  I  read  his 
life  history.  From  him  I  learned  that  the  point 
where  Mr.  Stuart  had  lost  his  horses  and  then  burned 
his  baggage  was  about  fifteen  miles  south,  and  he 
had  been  to  the  place.  He  was  rejoiced  to  find  one 
Avho  knew  of  and  was  interested  in  that  event,  and 
by  seeing  into  his  inner  life,  I  soon  drew  him  out 
and  found  him  very  entertaining.  As  a  relief  to  his 
lonely  life  he  sometimes  indulged  in  practical  jokes 
on  city  tenderfeet  who  came  there  to  hunt.  I  will 
relate  one  instance.  Some  very  high-toned  sjwrts- 
rnen  came  from  New  York  and  made  arrangements 
to   board    with   him;   thev    were   hiehlv   elated    with 


248  LIFE    AND    TRAVELS 

the  outlook  from  seeing  Kis  store.  The  first  morn- 
ing the  J  asked  him  where  was  a  good  place  to  hunt; 
he  sent  them  south,  on  a  range  of  naked  hills.  At 
night  they  came  in  tired  and  hungry,  but  had  no 
game;  next  dav  they  extended  their  hunt  further 
oft",  but  no  game  nor  any  sign  of  any.  Then  it  b^ 
gan  to  dawn  upon  them  that  there  was  a  trick,  and 
made  such  a  charge  upon  their  host  when  they  re- 
turned. He  quietly  informed  them  that  they  had 
only  asked  for  a  g(X>d  place  to  hunt,  l)ut  did  not  ask 
for  game,  so  he  sent  them  where  there  was  just  good, 
plain  huntir.ff,  but  if  the^-  wanted  game  they  must 
go  to  another  place.  Thev  were  highly  oft'ended  and 
took  their  departure  next  morning,  and  uj)  to  date 
had  not  been  heard  from. 

We  next  passed  over  heavy  timbered  hills  for 
several  hours,  then  came  to  the  foot  of  a  low  moun- 
tain which  bounded  the  park  on  the  west;  the  ascent 
was  slow,  for  the  horses  were  weary  and  the  way  was- 
steep,  but  we  reached  the  top  at  the  opj^ortune  mo- 
ment, for  the  air  was  still  and  no  smoke  floating  up 
the  sides.  Our  first  view  of  the  park  did  not  fill  the 
measure  of  our  anticipations,  yet  the  scene  was  fine. 

Before  us,  and  far  to  the  right,  several  hun- 
dreds of  columns  of  smoke  and  steam  were  rising 
from  among  the  ro<3ks,  trees  and  distant  hills.  In 
the  naked  valley  many  jets  of  steam  were  ascend- 


OF   ADDISON    COFFIN.  249 

ing,  swaying  in  the  setting  sunlight,  while  the  whole 
scene  was  surronnded  by  a  background  of  grand  pine 
forests  and  forest-covered  mountains.  In  the  fore- 
ground was  Madison  river,  at  the  foot  of  the  moun- 
tain, seemingly  at  our  feet,  a  broad,  rapid  stream  run- 
ning northward,  and  sending  up  from  its  surface  a 
light,  fleecy  mist  or  cloud  which  marked  its  entire 
course  throua^h  the  valley  and  off  among  the  hills. 
To  the  southwest,  a  few  miles  away,  smoke  ascended 
as  though  it  came  from  a  lake  of  fire,  and  the  as- 
cent was  very  rapid,  with  many  whirling  evolutions. 
Nearer  the  mountain  to  the  south,  a  large  column 
of  steam  rose  high  in  the  clear,  rarified  air,  which 
marked  the  location  of  the  Excelsior  geyser,  but  the 
evening  was  closing  in,  so  we  descended  into  the 
wonder  land,  forded  the  river  and  reached  Firehole 
Basin  Hotel.  On  the  way  Ave  saw  and  heard  enough 
to  prepare  the  mind  for  the  startling  and  terrible, 
for  as  we  trotted  along  the  lime  and  gravel  deposits 
we  passed  jets  of  steam,  boiling  pools,  extinct  gey- 
sers, with  a  constantly  increasing  heat,  which  seemed 
everywhere  to  come  from  the  ground. 

Though  tired  and  woni  with  our  rough  stag- 
ing, we  were  up  early  next  morning,  ready  for  an 
active  day's  Avork,  but  Ave  AA-ere  disappointed,  for  the 
whole  valley  and  mountains  were  covered  Avith  a  dense 
fog  or  mist  that  seemed  to  forelxxle  a  bad  day,  but 


250  LIFE    AND    TRAVELS 

at  sunrise  the  fog  lifted  in  white  clouds  and  floated 
away,  and  soon  everything  shone  in  bright  sunlight, 
with  a  distinctness  seen  only  in  high  altitudes  that 
approach  the  line  of  perpetual  snow.  We  were  tirst 
attracted  by  a  roaring  as  of  a  mighty  wind,  and  the 
rushing  of  many  waters;  the  sound  came  from  a  hill 
to  the  south,  which  was  being  rapidly  enveloped  in 
white  smoke  or  steam,  with  a  central  jet  shooting 
high  over  all.  Before  we  were  conscious  of  it,  we 
were  nearly  in  a  run  making  for  the  hill,  nor  did 
we  slacken  our  pace  when  a  man  stepped  out  of  the 
smoke  and  called,  "Just  in  time,  she's  going  to  play," 
and  play  she  did.  Upon  approaching  the  spot  we 
found  the  "Fountain"  geyser  in  a  state  of  active 
eruption.  It  was  a  rough,  irregular  cavern,  about 
ten  feet  in  diameter,  throwdng  out  floods  of  scald- 
ing water  by  violent,  irregular  explosions,  from  which 
clouds  of  smoke  and  steam  ascended  and  fell  in 
showers  of  mist  for  many  yards  around,  or  floated 
away  in  clouds.  This  violent  eruption  continued  for 
about  half  an  hour,  then  it  slowly  suljsided  to  a  boil- 
ing, blubbei-ing  po<)l,  but  every  two  hours  tlie  vio- 
lence is  repeated. 

When  our  awe  somewhat  toned  down,  we  looked 
around  and  found  we  were  in  the  midst  of  a  group 
of  ax^tive,  roaring  geysers  and  scorching  steam  jets, 
coming  from  fissures  of  all  sizes  and  shapes,  making 


OF    ADDISON    COFFIN.  251 

it  dangerous  to  walk  about  while  the  steam  and  smoke 
hung  near  the  earth.  As  we  stood  amazed  and  looked 
at  the  terrible  evidence  of  hidden  fire,  we  saw  not 
very  far  away  a  singular  column  of  smoke,  differing 
from  all  others.  Upon  passing  over  a  slight  ridge 
we  found  a  large  pool  of  boiling,  blubbering  mud, 
or  fluid  lime,  mixed  with  many  colors,  yellow  pre- 
dominating. This  is  called  the  Paint  Pot,  and  re- 
minds the  farmer  of  a  large  kettle  of  apple  butter 
Rearing  the  finish.  The  bureting  of  the  blubbers 
throws  great  splotches  of  mud  in  the  air  and  many 
yards  around,  blist-ering  naked  hands  and  spoiling 
fine  clothes. 

From  a  knoll  near  by  I  counted  o\^er  200  jets 
of  steam  and  smoke  in  the  basin,  and  all  in  active 
eruption,  while  on  the  hill  we  were  fortunate  in  wit- 
nessing one  of  the  grand  concerts  of  explosions  that 
happen  at  irregular  periods.  There  was  a  simul- 
t*aneous  eruption  of  a  hundred  or  more;  it  sounded 
as  though  suppressed  thunder  shook  the  hill  and  filled 
the  air,  vast  quantities  of  water,  steam  and  smoke 
were  vomited  forth,  and  for  a  time  darkened  the  air 
and  hid  the  hills.  To  the  uninitiated,  it  seemed  as 
though  the  hour  of  doom  and  the  eclipse  of  nature 
had  come.  After  beholding  this  grand  display,  we 
were  ready  for  any  and  all  things,  either  terrible,- 
sublime  or  beautiful. 

From  the  fountain  it  is  over  a  mile  to  Hell's  Half' 


252  LIFE    AND    TRAVELS 

Acre,  ar  Excelsior  geyser,  on  the  west  side  of  the 
river;  we  found  the  place  well  named.  It  is  the 
largest  geyser  in  the  world;  it  is  a  fearfnl  crater  of 
boiling  water,  nearly  200  feet  across,  and  of  unknown 
depth;  a  A'ast  cloud  of  steam  shoots  to  the  skies,  as 
if  sent  from  the  blast  of  a  furnace.  It  is  seldom 
that  any  one  can  look  into  the  fearful  gulf,  so  in- 
tense is  the  heat  and  blinding  the  smoke;  the  water 
is  thrown  about  in  ffreat  waves  with  such  violence 
that  it  sounds  like  an  angry  sea  dashing  on  a  rocky 
coast.  Once  in  three  years  it  is  in  active  eruption, 
and  discharges  a  river  of  scalding  wat^r  every  twenty- 
four  hours  for  many  weeks.  During  these  eruptions 
the  deep  thunder  of  the  explosion  is  heard  many  miles 
away,  and  the  adjacent  hills  tremble,  while  Madison 
river  is  turned  into  a  rushing  torrent  of  hot  water; 
for  many  miles  it  is  too  hot  for  fish  or  reptiles,  and 
the  wild  fowls  give  it  a  mde  margin. 

Less  than  200  feet  westward  from  this  geyser  is 
Sunset  Lake,  a  broad  pool  of  crystal  water  nearly 
motionless,  yet  scalding  hot.  Its  walls  and  irregular 
sides  are  incrusted  by  a  sedimentary  deposit  that  re- 
flects the  sunlight  far  more  beautifully  than  the  most 
brilliant  sunset  cloud  ever  seen  by  human  eye;  any 
wave-like  motion  sends  up  a  thousand  flashes  of  daz- 
zling light,  and  this  is  intensified  when  seen  at  dif- 
ferent angles,  (»r  flashed  up  from  deep  chambers  far 
below. 


OF    APDISON    COFFIN.  253 

Near  by  is  anotlier  pool  called  Emerald  Lake,, 
which  rivals  the  former.  Its  incrustations  throw 
back  a  brilliant,  emerald  light,  far  more  lovely  than 
the  most  vivid  imagination  can  picture.  The  im- 
pression made  cm  our  minds  was  almost  bewildering; 
the  scene  was  so  different  from  any  we  had  ever  be- 
held that  we  turned  away  with  feelings  almost  op- 
pressive, for  it  is  doubtful  whether  there  is  another 
place  where  there  is  so  much  of  the  terrible  and  the 
sublimely  beautiful  in  such  proximity  and  strange 
contrast. 

We  re-crossed  the  river  with  the  feeling  that  we 
had  seen  the  gi-eatest  of  wonders  and  all  else  would 
be  tame  and  uninteresting.  But  it  was  not  so;  be- 
fore we  had  gone  a  mile  on  the  way  to  the  upper 
geyser  basin,  we  saw  new  features  at  every  turn. 
There  were  great  boiling  pools,  spouting  fountainSy 
screaming  steam  jets,  with  low  rumbling  sounds  be- 
neath OTir  feet,  throbs  and  pulsations  among  the  rocks 
and  pines,  with  hollow  booming  from  beyond  the 
river  and  clc^uds  of  steam  rising  behind  the  hills  and 
up  the  sides  of  the  mountain.  Sometimes  we  passed 
pools  of  boiling  water,  clear  as  crystal,  Avith  scarcely 
any  vapor  rising  from  the  surface,  while  near  by  were 
fissures  emitting  a  colorless,  poisonous  fume,  wdth  a 
jarring  deafening  screech.  At  one  place  we  passed 
a   dark   chasm,    apparently     an   extinct     geyser,   and 


254  LIFE    AND    TRAVELS 

would  have  iikevl  to  peer  into  its  black  tlir'oat.  On 
the  return  trip  it  was  a  raging  'geyser,  throwing  scald- 
ing water  high  into  the  air.  Xear  a  bridge  over  the 
i-iver,  in  the  bed  of  the  stream,  was  a  magnificent 
geyser,  throwing  water  ninety  feet  high;  when  we 
came'  back  the  river  was  flowine-  quietly  onward  as 
though  no  fire  raged  below.  There  was  not  a  space 
of  a  hundred  yaixis  between  Fire  Hole  and  upper 
geyser  basin  but  indicated  activity  in  the  fire  below. 
As  we  entered  the  open  space  of  the  upper  basin, 
another  phase  of  interest  met  our  gaze.  First,  we 
were  surprised  to  see  so  many  columns  of  every  size 
and  color;  then  it  seemed  th^at  far  and  near  there 
was  a  tremulous,  rumbling  sound  coming  from  we 
knew  not  where,  wliile  under  our  feet  there  was  a 
constant  jar,  with  sudden  jolts  as  if  a  cog  were  broken 
in  the  vast  machine  which  furnished  the  motive 
power  below.  A  turn  in  the  road  brought  us  in 
sight  of  the  hotel,  and  just  beyond  Old  Faithful  was 
roaring  in  grand  magnificence,  throwing  a  colurmi 
of  hot  water  a  hundred  feet  high,  from  which  clouds 
of  mist  floated  oft'  to  the  mountain.  Old  Faithful 
is  the  most  popular  geyser  in  the  park,  but  not  the 
most  wonderful.  It  is  active  at  regular  intervals  of 
fifty-five  to  sixty  minutes;  it  continues  in  eruption 
from  five  to  seven  minutes,  then  sul>sides  to  almost 
silence,   and   thus  it  goes  on  continually   night  and 


OF    ADDISON    COFFIN, 


255 


day.  Ite  ea^y  accessibility  and  regularity  has  made 
it  popular;  the  lazy,  the  lame,  the  old  and  infirm 
can  see  it  without  effort.  From  the  hill  formed  by 
the  sediment  around  it,  other  columns  of  steam,  larger 
in  volume  and  more  rapid  in  ascent,  can  be  seen. 
Many  of  those  columns  of  steam  come  from  craters 
formerly  grand  and  terri])le,  but  some  of  them  are 
difficult  of  access,  and  the  average  tourist  never  sees 
them.  We  visited  several  of  the  isolated  ones,  and 
were  amply  repaid  for  the  toil. 

Across  the  river,  north  of  Old  Faithful,  there 
was  a  hill  that  seemed  to  be  enveloped  in  smoke  all 
the  time,  with  sounds  of  constant  eruptions  of  no 
small  power,  but  not  one  of  the  fifty  tourists  present 
could  tell,or  seemed  to  care,  what  was  over  there. 
They  came  to  see  Old  Faithful,  and  had  thought  for 
nothing  else;  some  of  them  were  too  lazy  to  walk 
300  yaixls  from  the  hotel  to  get  a  close  view,  and  to 
go  a  half  mile  over  rocks  and  amid  smoke  seemed 
too  horiible  to  think  of .  We  went  over  the  river  on 
a  narrow  foot-bridge,  and  found  ourselves  in  the  midst 
of  an  area  of  nearly  forty  acres  in  extent,  almost 
covered  with  active  geysers,  fire  holes,  steam  vents, 
roaring  crevices  and  gaping  fissures,  making  up  a 
scene  approaching  the  fearful;  the  hill  seemed  to  be 
in  a  st^te  of  constant  vibration.  There  were  one 
hundred  craters  and  jets  in .  active  eruption  all  the 


256  LIFE    AND    TRAVELS 

time;  twenty  geysers  threw  cohimns  of  water  four 
to  six  feet  in  diameter,  twenty  to  thirty  feet  high,  every 
few  minutes,  varied  at  times  by  concerted  activity 
that  shook  the  entire  hill.  The  most  noted  was  Old 
Lion,  which  is  active  at  short  intervals,  with  a  loud, 
bellowing  roar,  ending  in  a  growl  similar  to  an  irri- 
tated lion.  Near  by  is  the  Lioness  and  two  Cubs,  also 
the  Sponge,  so  called  from  the  peculiar  deposit  re- 
sembling the  sponge.  A  steam  jet  is  named  the 
Model  from  its  regular,  rasping  whistle  like  that  of 
a  lo<"omotive.  Many  jets  are  continuous,  others  are 
intermittent,  but  the  latter  are  more  harsh  and  vio- 
lent; (juite  a  number  have  jar-shaped  craters  stand- 
ing up  three  to  six  feet  high,  so  symmetrical  in  form 
that  they  seem  to  have  been  fastened  by  art.  In 
the  northeast  corner  is  a  succession  of  clear  pools  of 
boiling  water,  but  though  most  of  them  are  scald- 
ing hot,  thev  are  as  smooth  as  a  mirror.  From  far 
below  it  all  there  comes  a  singular,  hollow,  drum-like, 
jarring  sound,  that  caunot  be  descril>ed  by  words. 

We  spent  twr^  hours  in  exploring  this  interest- 
ing }>lace  before  the  intense  heat  and  noxious  fumes 
compelled  us  to  return.  No  one  who  visits  the  park 
can  afford  to  miss  that  wonderful  spot;  without  it 
knowledge  of  the  wonderland  is  incomplete,  though 
it  takes  labor  and  is  somewhat  dangerous.  There 
are  more  attractive  jtlaces  off  the  fashionable  routes 


OF    ADDISON    COFFIN.  257 

than  on  them,  and  they  pay  for  all  the  time  and 
toil,  beside  to  the  young  and  sanguine  they  are  grand 
and  romantic. 

On  the  return  trip  from  the  upper  basin  we 
turned  aside  from  the  popular  route  to  see  what  lay 
in  the  hills  to  the  westward,  and  were  abundantly 
rewarded  for  our  tramj)  over  stream,  marsh  and  hills; 
there  was  much  that  is  not  mentioned  in  the  guide 
book  that  should  be  placed  first.  The  DeviFs  Punch 
Bowl  is  a  hot-water  geyser  on  a  liill  fifty  feet  high, 
f onned  of  the  deposit  of  ages.  It  is  six  feet  in  diame- 
ter, and  little  inferior  to  Old  Faithful,  and  far  more 
dark  and  repulsive.  Farther  up  on  a  hillside  was 
a  geyser  which  has  filled  six  acres  of  the  valley  several 
feet  deep  with  lime  and  black  sand  deposit.  We 
pushed  on  through  the  thick  brush,  low,  wet  land, 
acmss  naked  lime  deposits,  past  a  group  of  boiling 
pools,  on  up  to  near  the  foot  of  the  mountain,  where 
we  found  the  most  beautiful  thing  of  the  kind  .  on 
the  earth.  It  was  a  small,  sunset,  emerald  lake,  with 
its  raised  walls  incrusted  with  deposits  that  reflected 
back  the  sunlight  in  all  the  colors  of  the  rainbow, 
and  threw  a  luminous  radiance  up  into  the  air  as 
though  it  was  phosphorescent.  like  some  other 
pools,  it  was  still  and  sparkling  though  very  hot,  but 
its  dazzling  beauty  was  not  only  startling,  but  so 
sublime  that  it  was  difficult  to  realize  at  fii-st  sight  that 


258  LIFE    AND    TRAVELS 

we  were  l(X)king  at  a  thing  of  earth  and  not  enjoy- 
ing a  beautifnl  dream.  It  wa^'^  so  far  above  and  be- 
yond our  highest  imagination  that  it  was  intensely 
fascinating.  When  at  last  we  turned  to  leave  we 
could  only  express  our  impressions  by  exclaiming, 
^'To-o  beautiful  for  earth,"  and  it  will  ever  occupy 
a  place  in  memory  as  one  of  the  most  magnificent 
of  earthly  gems. 

All  over  that  portion  of  the  park  and  outly- 
ing country,  hid  away  among  the  pine  forests,  in 
inaccessible  ravines,  are  geysers  and  fire  holes  yet  un- 
seen by  the  tourist,  and  possibly  by  any  living  man, 
and  they  may  present  as  wT)nderful  phenomenon  as 
anything  now  known.  We  returned  to  Fire  Hole 
Basin  with  a  new  chapter  added  to  our  lives;  with  a 
multitude  of  new  ideas  and  man^-  exploded  theories. 
Next  morning  we  started  for  Xorris  basin,  or  "Col- 
ter's Hell,"  twenty-one  miles  away.  The  route  was 
through  splendid  pine  foi'ests,  over  gentle,  rolling 
hills  and  low  mountains,  through  upland  meadows 
and  peaks,  along  a  fine  pike  road  constructed  by  the 
government  engineers. 

We  passed  (Til)l)on  Kiver  canyon,  Avhich  in  any 
other  place  would  be  a  first-class  wonder;  then  came 
Gibbon  falls,  Virginia  rapids,  and  up  Nez  Perces 
river,  where  the  low  mountains  are  all  covered  with 
unbroken  forests  of  pines  untouched  by  fire.      It  is 


OF    ADDISON    COFFIN.  259 

SO  deep  and  dark  tliat  it  seemed  like  twilight  at  ti(x>ii- 
dav,  and  it  gave  ndicf  to  tlie  excitement  after  see- 
ing the  fearfnl  tilings  at  Fire  Hole  and  upper  Geyser 
basin. 

There  was  not  a  mile  of  the  journey  but  had 
some  boiling  fountain  by  the  roadside,  or  if  not  seen 
it  could  be  heard  in  the  solitude  of  the  great  for- 
est. Even  at  the  very  bottom  of  Gibbon  canyon 
there  were  iets  of  steam  hissing  and  whistling,  and 
one  great  boiling  cauldron  furnished  a  stopping  place 
to  contrast  the  extras  that  make  up  the  scene.  When 
we  emerged  from  the  hills  through  the  canyon,  we 
came,  into  a  wide  meadow  called  Elk  Park,  and  as 
we  looked  back  we  saw^  a  huge  mud  geyser  sending 
up  its  cloud  of  dark  smoke  1000  feet  above  us,  while 
oif  to  the  right,  down  in  the  meadow,  was  another 
cauldron  in  constant  eruption,  discharging  mud  and 
water. 

TvTotwithstanding  all  we  had  seen  before,  when 
we  arrived  at  Norris  basin  we  had  to  readjust  all 
our  previous  impressions  of  the  fearful  and  terrible, 
for  before  us  was  a  new  departure  in  all  that  relat^es 
to  a  land  of  fire  and  the  regions  below.  In  manv 
ways,  Norris  basin  is  the  most  interesting  point  of 
the  Park.  The  basin,  or  valley,  is  several  square 
miles  in  extent,  and  is  now,  and  has  been,  the  center 
of  the  original  lake  of  fire  of  which  Bad  Lands  was 


260  LIFE    AND    TRAVELS 

a  part,  as  also  Steamboat  Hill,  800  miles  distant. 
Ages  ago  the  great  lake  began  crusting  over;  in  the 
Bad  Lands  it  was  suddenly  put  out  and  the  fearful  con- 
^ailsions  that  followed  threw  up  the  mountains  and 
formed  Snake  River  plains.  In  tim€  it  all  crusted 
over  excepting  six  to  ten  acres,  which  is  now  called 
''Calder's  Hell/'  named  by  Washington  Irving  in 
1836.  The  last  open  lake  was  gTadually  covered, 
but  through  this  crust  huge  craters  were  the  outlets 
for  the  escaping  lava,  which  in  time  built  up  great 
cones  around  them  two  to  five  hundred  feet  high; 
then  they  slowly  became  extinct,  and  now  make  up 
the  distinctive  character  of  the  valley.  Then  there 
are  hundreds  of  geysers,  fireholes  and  craters  still 
active,  throwing  up  hot  mud,  lime  deposit,  streams 
of  hot  water,  vapor  and  steam.  There  are  a  few 
acres  of  the  lake  that  have  recently  crusted  over  wdth 
a  thin  layer  of  lava,  too  thin  to  bear  a  man,  and  it 
was  full  of  fissures  and  rents,  and  the  whole  area 
seems  to  be  in  constant  agitation,  as  though  there 
was  a  great  mass  of  melted  matter  rolling  and  swell- 
ing below;  the  sulphurous  fumes  that  rise  from  the 
surface  are  suffocating  and  poisoning.  When  there 
is  extra  activity  among  the  surrounding  geysers,  all 
<yf  ^^Colter's  Hell"  seems  to  be  swayed  to  and  fro  by 
convulsions  from  below,  and  hot  water  will  spout  in 
.such  a  multitude  of  jets  that  the  whole  surface  is 


OF    ADDISON    COFFIN.  261 

so(m  (•(►verfnl  witli  water,  steam  and  smoke,  from 
which  we  recoiled  in  teiTor;  the  verv  hills  shook  and 
the  terrible  held  sway  over  the  scene  until  most  minds 
will  be  fully  satisfied.  To  see  all  this  takes  time,  pa- 
tience and  nerve;  these  frightful  manifestations  do 
not  follow  any  apparent  or  regular  order  of  events, 
but  are  wholly  irregiilar,  though  of  frequent  occur- 
rence. The  phenomena  of  this  region  is  distinctive; 
on  a  hill  near  the  basin  is  a  steam  crater  called  ^^Old 
Growler,"  which  sends  up  a  column  of  steam  one 
hundred  feet  hig'h  with  a  sound  like  the  escape  valve 
of  a  locomotive,  but  fifty  times  more  rasping  to  the 
ear.  The  steam  is  full  of  lime  held  in  suspension, 
which  falls  like  fine  flour  on  the  rocks  and  bushes 
for  manv  yards  around,  and  it  can  be  gathered  in  the 
hand  like  snow  and  is  pure  lime  when  cool  and 
pressed  into  balls.  Rainbow  colors  surround  the 
column  of  steam,  varyine;  with  the  wind  into  a  thous- 
and forms.  A  hundred  yards  or  more  west  of  the 
basin  is  the  "Minute  Geyser,"  which  throws  a  column 
of  water  three  feet  in  diameter  thirty  feet  high  every 
minute,  and  never  misses  day  or  night.  Xear  Old 
Growler  is  a  basin  of  w^ater  thirty  feet  in  diameter, 
boiling  furiously,  while  further  cm  are  two  mud  pools 
in  constant  eruption,  one  jet  black  and  the  other  white 
as  snow.  Over  a  hill  three  hundred  yards  away,  about 
three  years  before  our  visit,  an  explosion  took  place 
17 


262  LIFE    AND    TRAVELS 

and  great  masses  of  rock  and  bowlders  were  hurled 
in  every    direction,   prostrating  trees  and    breaking 
things  to  pieces  for  many  yards  around,  thus  form- 
ing an  active  geyser,  the  only  one  known  to  be  of 
recent    origin.     The  crater  is  about    seven   feet  in 
diameter,  and  is  active  every  seven  minutes,  with  a 
loud  roar,  throwing  the  water  thirty  to  forty  feet  high 
and   forming  quite  a  steam.      Yet    within   a   circuit 
of  one  hundred  yards  there  are  twenty  other  aL'tive 
craters  or  boiling  pools  that  seemingly  might   have 
given  ample  vent  without  explosion  and  this  addition. 
To  the  south  and  southwest,  within  the  radius  of  a 
mile,  are  over  two  hundred  active  craters  and  fissures 
in  the  earth,  and  as  we  climbed  over  the  rough  rocL^ 
and  extinct  craters,  we  found  something  new  on  every 
side;  toilsome  as  it  was,  we  felt  repaid  after  we  had 
returned   from   the   strange   scenes   among  the   hills. 
On  the  east  of  the  l>asin  the  surface  is  bare  and  so 
hot  that  we  could  not  stand  walking  over  it  for  more 
than  half  an  hour,  and  the  poisonous  fumes  gave  us 
headaches  of  a  peculiar  character  that  warned  us  to 
leave  the  spot.     While  standing  on  a  hill  near  Old 
Growler  I  counted  two  hundred  columns  of  smoke 
to  the  northwai*d,  and  on  the  other  side  of  the  valley. 
There  were   different  colors  in   the  great   clouds   of 
smoke  that  floated  away,  yet  the  colored  clouds  seemed 
to  have  no  affinity  for  each  other,  but  floated  away  in 


OF    ADDISON    COFFIN.  263 

separate  masses,  the  blue  and  yellow  especially  seemed 
to  repel  instead  of  mingling  together.  It  is  the  same 
with  the  blue  and  colorless  vapors  as  they  come  from 
the  earth;  though  the  wind  drives  the  blue  directly 
across  the  colorless  vapors,  yet  it  will  not  mingle  or 
cross,  but  ascends  or  turns  aside,  as  from  a  solid  wall. 
Much  of  the  basin  is  covered  with  a  white  deposit  of 
lime  and  sand,  too  hot  for  vegetation ;  even  on  some  of 
the  hills  it  is  too  hot  for  the  pine  trees  to  grow  and  for 
people  to  stand  long  in  one  place,  but  everywhere 
among  the  old,  disintegrating  craters,  the  pine  tree 
persistently  makes  encroachments  on  fields  of  former 
desolation. 

When  we  visited  the  basin  there  were  probably 
forty  other  tourists-  present  all  or  part  of  the  time. 
It  was  amusing  to  watch  their  actions  and  hear  their 
comments;  not  more  than  one  in  ten  left  the  high- 
way, many  did  not  leave  the  stages,  none  were  more 
thaii  one  hundred  yards  from  the  road  in  any  direc- 
tion, many  were  taking  copious  notes  in  diaries,  and 
all  seemed  to  go  away  happy  in  the  thoiight  tliat  they 
had  seen  all  there  w^as  to  be  seen  at  Xorris  Basin. 
Unfortunately,  many  of  the  guide  books  are  made 
up  from  such  knowledge,  while  the  reallv  interest- 
ing, the  tnily  wonderful  are  not  mentioned,  for  they 
have  not  been  seen  by  the  writers. 

We    next   journeyed    eleven    miles    through    as 


264  LIFE    AND    TRAVELS 

grand  forests  and  natural  scenery  as  any  we  had 
passed  throngh ;  this  bronght  us  to  the  crowning  won- 
der of  the  park,  if  not  the  worhl,  the  Yellow^stone 
Canyon,  which,  like  Xorris  Basin,  caused  another 
re-adjustment  of  ideas,  for  it  has  characteristics  pe- 
culiar to  itself,  and  for  which  we  have  no  standard  of 
comparison.  At  the  time  the  Bad  LandvS  were 
formed,  a  vast  mass  of  semi-fluid  matter  was  sud- 
denly cooled  and  throwai  into  a  low  range  of  moun- 
tains; chemical  action  was  suddenly  aiTested  among 
its  elements;  the  result  was  all  the  colors  of  the  mass 
became  fixed,  and  the  colors  of  the  rainbow  were 
strangely  and  wonderfully  commingled.  The  for- 
mation is  about  as  solid  as  average  chalk.  This  moun- 
tain range  at  one  time,  by  some  unknown  means,  has 
been  cleft  from  top  to  base,  making  a  canyon  or  gorge 
from  three  to  four  thousand  feet  deep,  serpentine  and 
irregular  in  its  course.  Through  this  gorge  the  Yel- 
lowstone river  flows,  entering  from  the  south,  flrst 
by  a  succession  of  steep  rapids  called  upper  falls,  then 
a  short  distance  below  it  plunges  dowm  a  perpendic- 
ular fall  of  three  hundred  feet  into  a  chasm  that 
anywhere  else  would  be  fearfully  grand;  then  it  rushes 
wildly  onward  over  a  succession  of  roaring  rapids 
until  the  gorge  is  passed. 

All    this    magnificence    faded    into    nothingness 
when  we  stO(^^)d  on  Observation  and  Inspiration  Points, 


OF    ADDISON    COFFIN.  265 

dizzy  crags  that  project  from  the  west  wall  far  out 
over  the  fearful  abyss,  and  found  oui*selves  sur- 
rounded by  a  thousand  rainbow  colors,  reflected  from 
adjacent  cliffs,  overhanging  rocks,  yawning  gulfs,  and 
broad  streams  of  many-colored  sands  disintegrating 
and  descending  into  the  river,  all  sending  back  a  con- 
stantly-changing light  as  the  varying  clouds  floated 
above,  as  the  morning  sunlight  changed  to  noonday, 
and  then  to  evening-tide,  fllling  the  vast  canyon  with 
a  glow  of  radiant,  lambent  glory  which  no  words  can 
describe.  Any  one  with  the  least  bit  of  ideal  imagin- 
ation, ^vith  any  love  of  the  sublime  and  mai-velous, 
will  stand  with  astonishment  when  this  bewildering 
scene  of  beauty  bursts  on  his  sight. 

There  are  other  points  from  which  this  charm- 
ing scene  can  be  enjoyed,  but  they  have  to  be  seen 
to  be  understood.  There  is  no  other  place  on  earth 
where  there  is  so  much  of  the  truly  beautiful  to  be 
seen  in  such  blending  of  harmonious  colors,  and  its 
inspiring  sublimitv  is  incomparable.  There  were 
some  largo  paintings  at  the  hotel,  made  by  a  master 
hand,  but  they  were  far  short  of  the  real  scene,  for 
it  is  impossible  for  an  artist  to  reproduce  these  won- 
ders or  even  a  sunset  cloud. 

After  seeing  the  beautiful  canyon,  other  \dew9 
began  to  lose  their  interest,  and  we  found  ourselves 
half  dreaming  about  some  imagined  fairy  land,  where 


266  LIFE    AND    TRAVELS 

we  wanted  to  dwell  amcmg  scenes  of  rainbow  beauty; 
bnt  there  are  few  places  that  require  more  activity 
of  eye,  ear,  memory  and  mind  than  Yellowstone 
Park.  There  we  come  in  contact  with  the  operation 
of  forces;  new,  stubborn  facts  confront  us  under  new 
conditions.  Many  pet  theories  of  the  scientists  are 
wholly  at  fault;  they  ^^dll  not  work;  cross-currents 
of  facts  through  all  that  region  come  and  spoil  all 
our  ideals.  We  have  to  call  into  use  new^  faculties, 
and  use  our  old  ones  in  new  ways,  and  then  find  our- 
selves at  sea.  The  theory  of  the  drift,  the  great  ice 
sheet  that  once  covered  the  noithland,  the  upheavals 
and  submergence,  all,  all  becomes  mixed  and  per- 
plexing. AVe  cannot  understand  the  reason  why,  so 
we  leave  it.  There  is  one  thing  of  which  we  are 
sure — we  have  a  ^^icture  graven  on  memory  that  will 
not  fade. 

In  parting  from  thfs  wonderful  region,  after 
crossing  it  in  five  places  and  traveling  two  hundred 
miles  north  and  south  through  it,  I  can  say  that 
everywhere  I  saw  evidence  of  forces  not  described 
nor  accounted  for  in  the  books,  evidently  not  seen 
nor  understood  by  the  scientists.  The  pet  theory  of 
evolution  will  not  work  from  a  practical  standpoint. 
There  is  evidently  an  active,  all  per\^ading  force  not 
yet  understcKKl. 

We  returned  bv  the  same  route  to  Beaver  Can- 


OF    ADDISON    COFFIN.  267 

yon,  with  no  new  discoveries.  We  met  an  old  Rus- 
sian nobleman  and  wife  at  our  Bachelor  Hotel;  the 
wife  could  talk  American,  and  was  very  interesting. 
They  had  crossed  Europe,  through  Siberia  to  the 
mouth  of  the  Amoor  river,  and  there  took  a  steamer 
by  wa}'  of  San  Francisco  and  were  going  home  by 
way  of  Xew  York  and  London.  At  the  Log  Cabin 
Hotel  an  incident  took  place  that  is  worth  recording. 
Two  St.  Bernard  dogs,  male  and  female,  had  been 
missing  a  day  and  a  night;  all  were  anxious  for  their 
safety.  The  next  morning  they  returned  in  sad 
plight,  the  male's  head,  especially  his  mouth  and  nose, 
stuck  full  of  porcupine  quills;  the  other  one  did 
not  have  ouite  so  many  sticking  to  her.  The  intel- 
ligent fellow  went  to  his  master  and  held  up  his  head 
and  whined  in  a  way  that  was  understood.  The  man 
sat  down  and  carefully  pulled  them  all  out,  and 
though  his  head  was  much  swollen  he  never  winced, 
but  seemed  thankful  and  grateful :  the  other  one  came 
up  for  the  same  favor.  There  were  three  hundred 
quills  sticking  to  them.  They  had  found  a  den  of 
porcupines,  dug  them  out  and  destroyed  them  before 
giving  it  up.  They  had  done  so  before;  when  com- 
plimented they  understood  and  wagged  their  satisfac- 
tion. These  two  dogs  had  actually  killed  several 
black  bears,  for  they  knew  how  to  get  the  advantage; 
besides  these  two  larae  ones,  there  seemed  to  be  about 


268  LIFE    AND    TRAVELS 

a  dozen  otiier  dogs  mixed  up  promiscuously  witli  the 
children. 

We  reached  the  railroad  in  time  to  take  the 
evening  train,  and  ran  down  to  Idaho  Falls  and  stopped 
off  with  J.  A.  Clark,  a  former  neighbor  and  kins- 
man, where  we  had  a  glad  reunion.  The  next  day 
he,  his  wife  and  son  drove  us  over  the  same  gTOund 
I  had  walked  over  some  years  before.  It  was  mar- 
velous what  a  change  had  come;  thousands  of  acres 
were  in  cultivation,  twenty  miles  of  a  great  in-iga- 
tion  canal  was  completed;  ground  that  was  in  sage 
brush  when  I  first  saw  it  had  thirty-six  bushels  of 
wheat  per  acre  on  it,  and  other  crops  in  like  propor- 
tion. Beautiful  homes  were  in  sight  on  every  side, 
and  it  was  truly  a  magic  transformation ;  yet  improve- 
ment had  just  begun.  The  capacity  of  the  canal 
when  finished  was  200,000  acres,  and  the  land  was 
there  awaiting  its  coming.  Such  cases  as  this  could 
be  multiplied  many  times  over,  but  it  will  ser^^e  to 
show  what  can  be  done,  and  where  the  center  of 
wealth  and  power  will  soon  l)e. 

We  parted  from  our  friends  and  relatives  and 
made  a  continuous  run  via  DenA^er  to  Lawrence,  Kan., 
where  we  stopped  a  few  days.  Then  my  niece  went 
on  to  meet  her  sister  and  friends  from  Carolina  at 
the  World's  Fair,  Chicago,  while  I  went  south  to  see 
my  brother  Alfred,  now  quite  infirm,  spent  some  time 


OF    ADDISON    COFFIN. 


269 


with  liiiii,  then  returned  to  Lawrence  and  went  out 
twelve  miles  to  Hesper  to  see  many  old  friends, 
neighbors  and  relatives,  then  on  to  Chicago,  where 
I  found  my  niece  had  started  homeward.  She  stopped 
at  Indianapolis,  Ind.,  and  then  went  to  her  kome  in 
Xortli  Carolina,  greatly  improved  in  health,  and  I 
arrived  at  my  home  once  more,  safe  and  well. 

I  promised  my  daughter  that  I  would  return 
in  time  to  go  with  her  and  a  company  of  neighbors 
to  the  World's  Fair  before  it  closed.  So  we-  aiTanged 
the  date  and  the  company,  and  spent  several  days 
amid  that  grand  exhibit  of  human  achievement.  To 
me  it  was  less  interesting  than  to  my  neighbors,  for 
in  my  travels  I  had  seen  so  much  of  it  in  other  places, 
though  I  proved  to  be  quite  a  good  interpreter  of 
where  the  things  came  from.  My  chief  interest  was 
the  people.  There  was  an  op])ortunitv  to  study  hu- 
manity collectively,  and  I  useil  it  persistently,  and 
to  the  further  confinnation  of  the  reasonableness  of 
the  Anglo-Israel  theory.'  It  is  not  necessary  for  me 
to  describe  any  part  of  the  World's  Fair.  It  has  been 
done  by  so  many  and  has  so  effectively  passed  into 
histoiy  that  all  know  the  essentials  respecting  it. 

In  a  short  time  after  returning  from  Chicago  I 
arranged  to  spend  the  winter  at  Guilford  College  once 
more,  and  accordingly  went  down  there  in  December 
and  remained  until  April,  1  SlU.     I  had  spent  an  active. 


270  LIFE    AND    TRAVELS 

busv,  thinking,  writinif  season,  had  written  many 
letters  to  friends  and  for  pnhlication,  and  in  addition 
had  to  do  much  talking  at  all  tiie  stopping  places, 
t^lks  on  home  and  f(»reign  travel,  horticulture,  agri- 
culture, women's  rights,  temperance  and  children's 
stories.  I  was  also  much  interested  in  the  success 
of  the  W.  C.  T.  U.  Industrial  Home  for  girls  at  Had- 
ley,  Indiana,  which  was  in  an  embarrassed  condition 
for  a  time.  I  took  no  part  in  the  violent  political 
contests  that  were  agitating-  the  state,  though  mv  heart, 
and  sympathy  were  with  every  temperance  movement 
that  was  based  on  total  prohibition. 


* 


CHAPTER  NINE, 


Trip  to  Europe — Storm  at  Sea — Landing  at  Liver- 
pool— Change  of  Program — Start  for  Egypt  and 
Pass  Through  France  and  Italy  —  Voyage  to 
Egypt,  Cairo  and  the  Pyramids — Journey  to  Port 
Said---I^nding  at  Jaffa  and  Arriving  at  Jerusalem 
— Scenes  in  Palestine — Journey  to  Baalbeck  and 
Damascus — Stop  at  Brumana  on  Mt.  Lebanon — 
Cruise  Aniong  the  Islands — -Athens,  Greece,  and 
Its  Ruins — Voyage  to  Constantinople — The  Scenes 
in  the  City — Journey  Across  Europe  Back  to  Lon- 
don— Safe  Arrival  and  Finding  Our  Friends. 

When  I  turned  away  from  my  mother's  grave 
at  the  old  burial  ground  at  New  Garden,  North  Car- 
olina, in  NovemV)er,  1891,  I  felt  that  my  life  work 
was  done,  that  the  obligation  was  filled,  and  for  a 
time  a  sense  of  utter  desolation  oveq^owered  me,  and 
the  future  was  closed,  with  no  light  beyond,  so  far 
as  work  or  an  object  in  life  was  conc-emed;  but  that 
night,  as  if  by  inspiration,  the  idea  of  foreign  travel 
came  t('  me,  and  the  unemng  voice,  a?  in  the  past, 

(271) 


272  LIFE    AND    TRAVELS 

said:  "Go,  and  thou  slialt  return  in  peace."  From 
that  hour  I  }>egan  arranging  to  cross  the  ocean.  I 
returned  home  for  a  few  weeks,  and  then  came  back 
to  Guilford  College  to  spend  the  winter,  intending 
after  a  short  stay  at  home  to  go  to  Europe  in  the 
spring  or  early  summer,  but  during  the  winter  Mary 
C.  Woody  and  her  companion,  Lorena  Reynolds,  de- 
cided to  go  to  England  on  a  religious  mission.  They 
planned  to  start  in  February,  1892,  and  requested  me 
to  go  with  them  instead  of  later  on,  and  this  I  agreed 
to  do  and  wrote  home  accordingly.  A  few  days  be- 
fore starting  my  friend,  John  Van  Lindley,  one  of 
the  principal  nursery  men  of  the  South,  and  who 
lived  near  the  college,  unexpectedly,  even  to  him- 
self, concluded  to  go  with  me  on  my  long  trip  at 
least  for  a  nine  months'  stay,  then  he  would  come 
home  without  me  if  I  was  not  ready. 

The  program  was  to  visit  Egypt,  Palestine,  feyria, 
Asia  Minor,  and  all  the  nations  of  Europe.  Few 
thought  it  could  be  done  in  less  than  a  year,  hence 
J.  Van  Lindley  limited  himself  to  nine  months.  He 
was  needing  a  vacation  and  anxious  to  add  to  his 
store  of  knowledge  in  his  line  of  business.  The 
steamer  was  to  sail  Febiaiary  13th,  from  Xew  York. 
John  Van  Lindley  and  I  left  Greensboro,  X.  C,  the 
9th,  went  by  way  of  Washington,  secured  passports, 
and  then  on  to  New  York  to  obtain  letters  of  credit. 


OF    ADDISON    COFFIN.  273 

On  the  evening  of  Febrnarv  liitli  M.  (/.  Woody 
and  companion  came,  and  the  next  moniing  we  sailed 
ont  ()f  the  hay,  and  were  on  onr  way  to  the  new 
world.  We  were  on  the  Umbria,  of  the  Cunard  line, 
one  of  the  largest  steamers  afloat,  and  to  landsmen 
the  snrronndings  were  all  new  and  decidedly  excit- 
ing and  sensational.  My  traveling  companion  en- 
joyed it  to  the  fnll.  For  two  days  the  weather  was 
fine  and  the  prospect  very  good  for  a  qnick  voyage, 
but  on  the  third  day  we  met  a  gale  from  the  east 
that  suddenly  changed  the  whole  scene.  The  ma- 
jority of  the  pa'ssengei"s  had  an  interesting  experience 
with  seasickness;  my  lady  companions  were  troubled 
with  it  for  some  days,  but  J.  Van  Lindley  escaped 
almost  entirely  during  the  whole  crossing.  The 
tables  that  were  filled  at  first  were  nearly  empty  for 
two  days;  then  the  pale  faces  began  to  assemble,  but 
they  were  quite  mincing  about  eating.  The  storm 
increased  in  violence  as  we  proceeded,  and  became 
about  first-class.  The  last  two  days  of  the  voyage 
it  was  so  violent  that  neither  mail  nor  passengers  could 
be  landed  at  Queenstown:  all  were  taken  on  to  Liver- 
pool. 

AVhen  off  the  west  coast  of  Ireland  a  small  ship 
w^as  sighted  with  signals  of  distress  flying.  The  steamer 
bore  down  U>  the  shij)  an<l  four  men  w^ere  seen  cling- 
ing  to   the  rigging,    but   tlie   ship   rolled    so   heavily 


274  LIFE    AND    TRAVELS 

that  it  seemed  ready  to  go  down  at  an^  moment.  The 
captain  of  the  steamer  called  for  volunteers  to  at- 
tem])t  a  rescue ;  the  stonn  was  so  severe  and  the  danger 
so  great  that  he  would  not  order  anv  one  to  go.  One 
brave  fellow  stepped  out,  saving  he  would  steer  a  boat 
if  he  could  have  a  crew;  immediately  eight  more  he- 
roic men  offered  to  go.  After  much  difficulty  and 
danger  a  boat  was  launched  and  pulled  away.  To  me 
it  looked  like  not  only  a  hopeless  effort,  but  a  needless 
sacrifice  of  life,  for  I  was  sure  all  would  be  lost,  but  at 
the  end  of  an  hour's  hard  work  they  reached  the  ship, 
and  rescued  the  crew,  who  had  given  up  hope.  The 
return  to  the  steamer  was  finally  accomplished,  and 
the  almost  helpless  crew  lifted  out  of  the  boat;  these 
brave  seamen,  white  in  the  face  from  exhaustion,  stag- 
gered when  they  reached  the  deck,  and  had  to  l>e  sup- 
ported, but  the  light  of  determined .  courage  was  still 
in  their  eyes.  An  involuntary  shout  of  joy  and  con- 
gratulation went  up  from  hundreds  of  spectators. 
There  is  always  some  leader  who  comes  to  the  front  in 
an  emergency,  and  so  it  was  now ;  a  noble-hearted  man 
went  around  with  his  hat  and  was  eloquent  in  praise 
and  appeal.  Over  £80  (English  money)  was  collected; 
then,  when  the  exhausted  men  had  somewhat  recov- 
ered, they  were  called  and  astonished  by  £20  being 
given  to  the  boat  steerer  as  an  acknowledgement  of  his 
courageous  act,  £10  to  the  captain  of  the  ship  as  a  re- 


OF    ADDISON    COFFIN.  275 

ward  for  his  skill  in  saving  his  men,  the  remainder 
was  divided  equally  between  the  rescuers  and  the  res- 
cued, and  another  glad  shout  arose  above  the  rage  of 
the  stonn.  All  concerned  in  this  deed  were  English- 
men, and  from  mv  heart  I  thaid<;ed  the  Lord  for  such 
a  race  of  men. 

When  we  landed  at  Liverpool  we  found  the 
weather  very  cool  and  foggy.  There  had  been  (j^uite  a 
snow  fall,  which  extended  far  inland,  making  the  sit- 
uation unsafe  for  my  health,  so  the  program  was 
changed;  instead  of  remaining  some  time  in  England, 
we  resolved  to  go  to  a  warmer  climate.  Our  lady 
friends  parted  with  us  and  joined  some  of  their  English 
friends,  whom  they  had  met  in  America.  After  a  few 
days  we  went  on  to  London  and  bought  tickets  for 
Cairo,  Egypt.  We  made  a  shoTt  stay  in  London.  We 
went  to  Paris,  spent  a  day  or  so,  then  on  to  Rome  by 
way  of  Lyons  and  through  the  Mt.  Cenis  tunnel.  We 
remained  a  few  days  in  Rome,  saw  the  m6st  noted 
places  and  older  ruins,  fragments  of  2500  years  ago. 
We  hurried  to  Xaples,  expecting  to  meet  the  steamer 
from  England,  l)ut  it  was  three  days  late;  this  time  we 
spent  in  looking  at  the  beautiful  side  first,  then  at  the 
dark,  revolting  side.  We  resolved  to  climb  one  of  the 
old  Roman  rock  flights  of  stone  steps  to  the  top  of  the 
hill  a  thousand  feet  high.  We  did  not  then,  nor  shall 
we  ever  regret  doing  it,  but  we  do  not  again  want  to 


276  LIFE    AND    TRAVELS 

see  the  liorrid  sight  of  human  degradation,  filth  and 
slum  that  we  encountered  in  passing  the  rock  cham- 
bers. From  the  highest  point  of  the  old  ruined  castle 
we  surveyed  the  beautiful  surroundings  of  the  cele- 
brated bav,  had  a  good  view  of  Vesuvius  and  the  hills 
beyond,  but  after  seeing  so  many  of  our  own  grand 
views  combining  city,  water,  ocean,  plain  and  moun- 
tain, I  failed  to  see  wdiy  any  one  should  think  of  say- 
ing, "See  Xaples  and  then  die."  If  Americans  wish 
to  see  Xaples  as  it  is,  I  would  say  ride  through  its  long, 
beautiful  streets  at  fashionable:  hours,  visit  its  stately 
palaces  and  churches;  then  go  off  into  its  suburbs  and 
back  streets,  climb  one  flifi^ht  of  stone  steps,  spend  half 
a  night  on  its  streets,  with  its  commingling  throng'  of 
humanity,  and  then  you  will  know  what  Xaples  is. 
There  are  many  interesting  ruins  in  and  around  the 
eity ;  to  the  historian  there  is  much  of  interest,  for  dur- 
ing the  palmy  days  of  Roman  grandeur,  Xaples  was 
one  of  the  chief  resorts  for  possessors  of  wealth  and 
pride. 

We  were  glad  when  the  steamer  came  and  we 
aboard  and  in  our  cpiarters.  As  it  was  over  due  it  did 
not  stop  long,  and  we  were  soon  out  on  the  blue  watere 
of  the  Mediten*anean.  AVe  passed  the  coast  line  with 
its  green  fields,  \'ineyards  and  orchards  covering  the 
hills,  with  many  white  villages  partly  hidden  away 
among  the  hills.     Sometimes  we  could  see  with  our 


OF    ADDISON    COFFIN.  277 

glasses  the  people  on  the  shore,  and  the  goats  and  cat- 
tle among  the  rocks.  We  missed  one  historic  point, 
the  Strait  of  Messina  and  the  shores  of  Sicily.  It  was 
night  while  we  were  passing,  but  the  lights  on  the  hilLs 
on  either  side  of  the  strait  showed  that  life  abounded, 
and  the  numerous  sailboats  indicated  life  and  activity. 
Though  the  shores  were  invisible  I  realized  that  we 
were  passing  through  historic  waters,  and  near  his- 
toric shores  with  which  a  part  of  the  world's  history 
was  closelv  connected,  and  so  I  spent  the  larger  por- 
tion of  the  night  in  thought  and  calling  up  the  history 
of  the  past.  Without  previous  arrangement  we  met 
several  of  our  Umbria  fellow  passengei's  on  the  steam- 
er who,  like  ourselves,  were  going  to  warmer  countries. 
Among  them  was  a  Miss  Havens,  of  Chicago,  a  mis- 
sionary to  China.  She  had  been  twelve  years  in  China 
and  had  been  home  ^-isiting  her  brother  and  sisters, 
and  was  now  returning  to  her  mission.  We  foi*med 
her  acquaintance  and  she  requested  the  pri^dlege  of 
making  the  third  one  of  our  party  while  in  Egypt  and 
Palestine.  She  was  a  lady  of  superior  mind  and  scien- 
tific attainments  amd  well  posted,  had  traveled  on  foot 
two  days  on  top  of  the  great  Chinese  wall,  and  she 
gave  us  a  vivid  description  of  it. 

We  landed  in  Alexandria  March  4,  IS  1)2,  and 
suddenlv  stepped  out  of  western  civilization  into  semi- 
barbarism.     It  seemed  like  going  into  a  new  world. 

18 


278  LIFE    AND    TRAVELS 

We  were  siirrouiided  by  a  diffeiT:'nt  race  of  people, 
speaking  what  was  to  us  a  new  language,  dressed  in 
strange  costumes,  with  novel  habits  and  impulses;  all 
seemed  to  be  pushing,  imshing,  shouting  and  gesticu- 
lating in  a  frantic  manner,  which  for  a  time  was  quite 
bewildering,  but  by  going  slowly  and  acting  in  a  more 
composed  manner  than  we  felt,  we  soon  mastered  the 
situation  and  were  driven  by  an  English-speaking 
driveir  to  an  English  hotel,  where  we  had  time  to  adapt 
our  thoiights  to  the  abiiipt  introduction  into  Eastern 
life. 

Then  we  took  a  three  hours'  drive  through,  and 
around  the  citv.  We  went  to  the  remains  of  the  old 
wall  of  the  days  of  Alexander,  and  to  other  old  ruins; 
to  the  beautiful  gardens  along  the  great  canal,  to  the 
old  tombs,  through  the  long  streets  occupied  by  hun- 
dreds of  shops  and  bazaars,  and  through  the  open, 
noisy  market  places.  Here  we  first  met  the  huge, 
ugly,  repulsive-looking  camel,  with  its  enormous  load, 
with  the  ever-present  little  donkey  and  celebrated  his- 
toric, but  not  very  picturesque-looking  driver.  The 
strange  mixture  of  contrasting  nationalities  was  in- 
teresting and  stTiking.  There  were  representatives 
from  all  European  countries,  and  all  Eastern  nations 
excepting  China;  they  made  a  perfect  babel  of 
tongues  as  they  talked,  shouted  and  yelled,  making  an 
unj)leasant  impression  on  our  untrained  ears;  but  we 


OF    ADDISON    COFFIN.  279 

were  tolerably  apt  scholars,  aiul  inacle  good  progress, 
even  ^lie  first  day,  in  our  lessons,  not  in  learning  lan- 
guage, but  in  adjusting  oiu'selves  to  tbe  new  life. 

AYe  started  by  rail  for  Cairo;  soon  passed  tlie 
marshes  and  were  out  into  the  great  valley  of  the  iJ^ile. 
It  was  a  complete  sui*prise;  it  far  surpassed  in  beauty 
my  highest  ideals,  rose-colored  as  some  of  them  were. 
We  were  fortunate  in  the  time  of  our  visit.  The 
weather  was  that  of  early  June  in  our  country;  the 
wheat  was  in  full  head,  barley  just  heading,  sugar  cane 
ripe  and  being  cut,  vegetables  in  all  stages  of  growth. 
Hundreds  of  people  were  out  in  the  fields  at  work, 
with  camels  and  donkeys  nearly  as  abundant  as  people, 
all  loaded  with  fresh-cut  clover,  vegeta])les,  sugar  cane 
and  other  products  on  their  way  to  market;  w^hile  on 
the  canal  there  were  many  sail  and  rowboats  loaded 
with  the  fiiiits  of  the  rich  soil,  all  presenting  a  charm- 
ing picture  of  Egyptian  life  as  it  was  in  the  days  of 
Moses.  In  places  we  were  reminded  of  some  of  the 
most  beautiful  prairie  scenes  in  the  northwest  of  our 
country,  with  the  addition  of  magnificent  groves  of 
the  stately  palm  trees.  In  fact,  it  is  hard  to  exaggerate 
w^hen  speaking  of  the  Xile  vallev  when  seen  under 
favorable  circumstances. 

Next  morning,  after  our  arrival  in  Cairo,  we 
startet:!  earb'  for  the  creat  pvi^amid.  Nine  out  of  ten 
Americans  care  nothing  for  the  city  until  they  stand 


280  LIFE    AND    TRAVELS 

on  the  -gTeat  pyramid  and  see  the  sphinx.  We  drove 
along  a  beautiful  avenue  on  the  bank  of  the  l^ile,  then 
crossed  the  river  on  a  massive  iron  bridge,  along 
another  broad  avenue  of  acacia  trees,  six  miles  to  the 
west  of  the  valley.  At  first  sight  there  is  a  feeling  of 
disappointment.  It  looks  low  and  squatty,  but  as  we 
approached  its  huge  proportions  began  to  come  up 
against  the  blue  sky  and  our  disappointment  turned  to 
awe  and  delight.  When  we  arrived  at  the  base,  my 
friends  thought  it  unsafe  for  me  to  attempt  the  aseent. 
Miss  Havens  was  earnest,  though  very  kind  in  her  per- 
suarling.  Even  the  old  Arab  sheik  thought  it  impru- 
dent and  shook  his  head  dubiously,  but  they  knew 
nothing  of  my  mountain  climbing.  We  started  vnt\\ 
two  Arabs  a  piece  to  ''boost. "  Miss  Havens  kept  close 
to  me  in  her  anxiety  for  my  safety.  As  is  the  custom, 
Ave  halted  to  rest  about  every  hundred  feet.  At  the 
first  halt  Miss  Havens  asked  how  I  was  standing  it. 
At  the  second  stop  I  inquired  after  Miss  Havens. 
John  Van  Lindley  was  behind  at  third.  I  waited  for 
Miss  Havens  to  get  well  winded,  and  then  started  for 
the  top.  When  we  were  thirty  feet  from  the  summit 
Miss  Havens  said  softly  to  her  boosters,  ''Hurrv^  up,  I 
cannot  bear  the  idea  of  an  old  man  getting  there  first, 
after  saying  what  I  did,"  but  my  attendants  overheard 
it,  and  they  began  to  boost  with  a  will,  and  we  were 


OF   ADDISON    COFFIN.  281 

almost  earned  up,  Miss  Havens  arriving  two  steps 
ahead,  but  very  tired,  while  I  was  not  even  weary. 
John  Van  Lindlev  was  fifty  feet  behind,  but  came  up 
all  right.    My  stock  went  above  par  among  the  Arabs. 

The  scene  from  the  top  well  repaid  all  the  toil  of 
climbing  aside  from  the  historical  associations.  But 
it  has  been  described  by  tourists  and  in  school  books 
so  often,  that  a  brief  outline  is  all  that  I  shall  attempt, 
though  I  found  afterwards  that  I  saw  things  which 
few  mention,  if  they  ever  see  them.  The  stones  and 
plaster  casing  of  the  pyramids  and  all  the  old  ruins 
have  never  been  washed  by  rain,  or  moistened  by  dew ; 
the  constant  exposure  to  blazing  sunlight  for  unknown 
centuries  gives  them  a  peculiar  look,  not  seen  any- 
where else,  and  it  is  the  same  with  wood,  metal  and  all 
artificial  work;  even  the  people  bear  marks  of  heat  and 
light  without  moisture  in  the  air.  This  is  an  interest- 
ing and  distinctive  feature  of  Egypt.  Even  the  vege- 
tation p-rows  to  maturity  without  any  rain  t-o  wash  cM 
the  dust  of  the  desert. 

Looking'  westward  from  the  pyramid  the  im- 
broken  expanse  of  brown  sand  looks  dreary  and  deso- 
late in  the  extreme.  There  is  nothing  in  the  wide,  arid 
regions  of  our  great  plains  and  deserts  that  can  com- 
pare with  the  Sahara  in  its  repulsive  desolation.  We 
instinctively  turned  away  with  a  feeling  of  fear  and 
dread.      As  we  looked   to  the  south  and   toward  the 


282  LIFE    AND    TRAVELS 

valley,  we  belield  a  wonderful  scene.  The  deep  gTeenr 
of  the  lowland  contrasted  with  the  naked  hills  on 
either  side,  with  the  towns  and  villages  among  th.6 
palm  groves,  with  the  busy  life  that  disa]:)pears  as  the 
distance  lenothens  out,  and  above  all  the  wonderful 
city,  Cairo,  that  lay  smiling  at  our  feet,  with  its  gilded 
towers,  domes  and  minarets  gleaming  in  the  unbroken 
sunlight,  fonned  a  picture  that  belongs  to  Egypt  and 
to  it  alone,  for  there  is  more  or  less  rain  in  all  other 
habitable  parts  of  the  earth. 

The  descent  was  more  tiresome  than  the  ascent, 
and  we  felt  it  considerably.  We  began  to  relax  from 
the  intense  excitement,  and  are  more  conscious  of  pain. 
From  the  Uv^  of  the  pyramid  we  saw  a  lesser  one  near 
by,  and  southward  in  the  desert  a  group  of  small  ones, 
which  were  interesting  objects  as  seen  through  the 
glass.  The  s])hinx  is  near  the  southwest  corner,  and 
we  looked  down  upon  it  in  a  way  that  intensified  our 
desire  for  a  nearer  view  of  this  wonderful  work  of  a 
lost  race,  and  to  it  we  hurried  on  reaching  the  gTound. 
To  me  it  had  an  interest  equal  to  anything  ever  seen 
before  or  since.  The  sand  has  been  all  cleared  away, 
and  we  now  understand  the  figure ;  it  is  a  human  head- 
ed lion,  ninety  feet  long,  hdng  down  with  the  fore 
paws  extended  as  in  nature.  The  whole  thing  has  been 
cut  out  of  a  solid  rock  cliff,  it  is  still  a  part  of  the  rock 
formation,  and  has  not  been  detached.     There  is  a 


OP    ADDISON    COFFIN.  283 

Space  of  eight  to  twelve  feet  wide  excavated  all  around 
it  four  feet  lower  tluin  its  l)ody,  thus  leaving  it  as  if  it 
were  lying  on  a  long  block  of  stone. 

It  is  impossible  to  convev  a  correct  idea  of  the 
massive  figure.  Everything  is  in  such  proportion,  ^he 
joining  of  the  lion  and  the  human  neck  is  so  perfect 
that  we  could  not  determine  the  point  of  the  union. 
The  whole  figure  can  be  better  understood  by  saying 
that  from  the  tip  of  the  chin  to  the  top  of  the  fore- 
head is  fourteen  feet,  and  this  measurement  is  in  har- 
mony with  the  size  of  the  forehead,  body  and  limbs. 
The  face  has  evidently  been  noble  and  verv  beautiful^ 
but  it  is  now  scarred  and  mutilated.  Some  brutal 
Turkish  soldiers  fired  a  four-pound  cannon  at  the  head 
the  ball  striking  the  side  of  the  face,  but  a  genius  of 
the  fine  arts  could  restore  it.  Xear  by  the  sphinx  an  old 
buried  and  lost  temple  has  been  discovered,  and  exca- 
vations promise  rich  discoveries.  A  long  passage  has 
been  opened,  which  leads  to  an  alabaster  chamber  so 
beautifully  dazzling  that  the  eye  cannot  bear  the  re- 
flection when  a  magiiesium  light  is  introduced. 

At  last  we  turned  from  these  wonders  to  the  cool 
shade  of  the  acacia  trees,  and  took  our  lunch  and  com- 
pared notes  and  impressions,  and  here  we  fully  realized 
the  ability  of  our  ladv  companion.  She  was  not  only 
posted  in  history,  but  a  linguist  and  antiquarian.  As 
we  were  preparing  to  go  back  to  the  city,  the  rank  and 


284  LIFE    AND    TRAVELS 

iile  of  tourists  were  coming  out  to  <!<►  their  climbing  in 
the  heat  of  the  day,  instead  of  early  morning  as  we 
had  done.  We  went  directly  to  the  gTeat  museum, 
where  the  wonders  of  lost  Egypt  are  now  being  col- 
lected on  her  own  soil;  we  walked  through  the  long 
hall  among  the  relics  of  the  past,  until  we  seemed  to 
belong  to  the  past  ourselves ;  but  when  we  entered  the 
hall  of  Pharaohs  we  were  still  more  astonished  and 
pleased  with  ^liss  Havens,  for  she  could  read  the  in- 
scripticvns  on  the  coffins,  which  had  been  made  4000 
years  ago,  giving  the  name  and  date  of  death  of  the 
now  dry  and  shrivelled  mummy,  that  was  once  a  living 
king.  The  kings  of  the  dynasties  were  ranged  in 
groups  in  long  lines  in  the  hall  of  the  kings  with  name 
and  supposed  pericvd  of  their  reigns.  There  was  a 
break  in  one  line,  where  three  rather  noted  mummies 
were  separated  from  the  others.  Miss  Havens  read  on 
the  papyri  that  they  were  father,  son  and  grandson, 
the  middle  one  the  ''Pharaoh  of  the  Exodus,"  and  the 
younger  his  successor.  The  three  were  in  no  way  un- 
like the  others  excepting  they  were  above  them  in 
height.  Their  biographies  w^ere  written  with  the  same 
characters  as  thc^se  of  hundreds  of  years  before  and 
after  their  time.  T^pon  leavinsr  the  museum  we  re- 
turned tc>  the  hotel  to  rest  and  discuss  the  ever-increas- 
ing wonders  that  were  coming  up  on  every  side.  We 
decided  that  Egvpt  had  to  be  seen  to  be  rightly  under- 


OF    ADDI80N    COFFIN,  285 

stood.  The  next  day  was  spent  in  goino:  through  the 
citj,  driving  through  the  clean  streets  of  modern 
Cairo,  thronged  by  people  from  every  nation  under 
heaven,  with  a  strange  mina'ling  of  extreme  western 
and  extreme  eastern  life.  The  bicycle  rider  went  fly- 
ing by,  the  donkey  rider  with  driver  running  behind, 
the  fine  English  coach  and  four  whirled  past,  the  huge 
freight  camel  with  its  great  load  aud  long  swinging 
gait.  The  western  lady,  with  head  erect  and  open  face, 
crowded  the  veiled  and  shrouded  eastern  beauty  in  the 
fashionable  bazaars,  each  pitying  the  other  for  lack  of 
taste  and  for  being  so  benighted  and  barbarous.  So  it 
was  at  every  turn  in  every  department  of  business;  the 
habit  and  usages  and  customs  of  4000  vears  ago  were 
seen  from  the  electric  cars;  while  the  camel  driver 
from  Bagdad  smoked  his  pipe  from  among  bales  and 
bundles  looking  with  pitying  eyes  upon  the  horrid  in- 
novations, devoutly  calling  upon  Ali  and  the  Prophet 
to  deliver  him  from  the  influence  of  the  barbai^ans. 
In  the  winter  Cairo  is. a  paradise  of  beauty  and  enjoy- 
ment.   In  summer  it  is  like  a  burning  oven. 

With  regret  w^e  left  the  valley  of  the  Nile  and 
went  nearlv  due  east  by  rail  to  Ismalia  on  the  Suez 
canal,  there  took  steamer  for  Port  Said  on  the  coast. 
The  ride  on  the  canal  w^as  interesting  but  devoid  of  all 
romance,  ^^^len  in  deep  cuts  we  saw  nothing  but  bare 
sandy  or  clay   walls,  when  on  the  till>  or  acpieducts 


"286  LIFE    AND    TRAVELS 

across  the  valley  and  depressions  the  dreary  burning 
sand  stretches  off  to  the  horizon,  which  made  the  eyes 
and  head  ache  like  a  snow  field  in  the  sunlight.  Of  the 
two  the  snow  is  the  more  endurable.  We  stopped,  a 
day  and  night  in  Port  Said  to  see  the  ^'Half  VV^av 
Place"  of  the  world.  All  ships  and  steamers  going  to 
or  from  the  east,  stop  there  to  hear  the  news,  exchange 
reports,  get  supplies,  send  cablegrams,  write  letters  and 
have  a  short  rest.  The  port  is  always  full  of  ships 
with  flags  of  all  nations  flvinp-  from  the  flagstaff,  while 
the  character  and  look  of  the  sailors  defv  description. 
They  range  from  East  Indian  pirates,  to  splendid 
specimens  of  English  and  American  manhood. 

Erom  Port  Said  ^ve  went  by  steamer  to  Jaffa  in 
Palestine.  The  sea  being  quite  rough,  at  Jaffa  the 
steamer  lay  out  a  mile  from  shore.  The  passengers 
and  bagaa^e  were  picked  up  by  brawn v  Arabs  and 
dropped  into  boats  alongside  and  caught  by  the  fellows 
in  the  boats.  It  was  a  new  and  rather  unpleasant  sen- 
sation, this  being  dropped,  but  it  was  all  successfully 
accomplished  without  a  miss.  The  ride  through  the 
dangerous  reefs  in  the  rough  sea  was  quite  enjoyable, 
for  we  had  such  confidence  in  our  Arab  boatmen  and 
their  fellows  on  shore,  that  had  we  upset  they  would 
have  carried  us  ashore  upon  their  backs.  This  harbor 
and  the  reef  thi-ouo-h  which  we  were  passing  has  been 
associated  with  human  events  €ver  since  the  confusion 


OF    ADDISON    COFFIN.  287 

of  tongues,  hence  a  small  adventure  would  have  been 
enjoyable,  but  we  landed  safelv  and  realized  at  last 
that  we  stood  upon'tbe  Holv  Land. 

Jaffa  is  one  of  the  oldest  cities  of  the  world* 
Pliny  says  it  was  a  city  l)efore  the  flood.  There  is  an 
undoubted  record  that  it  was  an  important  city  in  the 
time  of  Sennacherib.  It  has  had  an  eventful  history j^^ 
been  destroyed  and  rebuilt  many  times,  and  has  been 
closely  connected  with  Jewish  historv  since  the  time 
of  Joshua.  It  was  the  seaport  of  Solomon,  and  a  por- 
tion of  a  massive  sea  wall  built  bv  him  is  still  standing, 
though  today  it  is  nearlv  a  hundred  yards  inland.  The 
crusaders  made  it  one  of  their  strongholds,  and  many 
of  their  walls  and  towers  are  still  standing.  Amon^ 
the  interesting  relics  is  the  house  of  Simon,  the  tanner, 
with,  a  stone  tan  vat  in  perfect  preservation  standing 
before  a  group  of  houses  suiTOunding  the  small  open 
court,  showing  by  their  consti'iiction  that  they  were 
built  before  our  era.  In  an  orange  orchard,  some  dis- 
tance off,  we  saw  the  house  in  which  Peter  restored 
Dorcas  to  life,  now  partly  under  ground.  It  belongs 
to  the  same  period  as  the  house  of  Simon. 

The  city  has  25,000  inhabitants,  Mohammedans, 
Jews  and  Christians,  and  to  the  historian,  antiquarian 
and  general  reader  is  full  of  interest.  For  a  mile  or 
more  it  is  surrounded  by  orange  orchards,  gardens, 
vineyards  and  flowers  protected  by  thick  hedges  of 


288  LIFE    AND    TRAVELS 

thorny  cacti.  There  are  many  hospitals,  schools  and 
churches  maintained  by  Europeans,  which  are  doing 
much  good.  Eastern  life  is  seen  here  a*  at  Alexandria 
with  persistent  unchanging  customs  in  contrast  with 
European  improvements.  The  ties  on  the  Jerusalem 
railroad  were  delivered  on  the  landing  by  ships  from 
ISTorway.  From  the  landing  to  the  construction  train 
they  were  carried  on  camels,  six  being  a  camel's  load, 
and  it  was  a  novel  sight  to  see  a  long  line  of  these 
strctng  animals  carrying  their  unwieldy  burdens; 
everybctdy  gave  them  the  right  of  way  as  they  passed. 

In  the  noisy  market  place  we  saw  for  the  first 
time  ^Hwo  women  grinding  at  the  mill,"  though  we 
did  not  take  one  as  in  the  scripture ;  we  also  saw  a  man 
grinding  alone,  7)erspirinp-  as  in  a  harvest  field;  both 
mills  after  the  ])attern  of  those  on  the  oldest  monji- 
ments  in  Egypt.  It  wa^  the  same  with  many  things 
on  sale.  There  has  been  no  change  for  4000  years,  aiid 
the  mechanics  and  craftsmen  worked  like  automatons 
with  their  primitive  tools.  All  seemed  as  incapable  of 
change  a^  the  camel  to  alter  his  hump,  or  the  China- 
man his  bias  eyes. 

At  4  p.  m.  we  tcKtk  a  carriage  and  drove  two  hours 
to  the  toAvn  of  Ramlah,  along  a  fine  pike  road,  equal  to 
anything  in  Europe,  and  crossed  the  plain  of  Sharon 
with  all  its  wonderful  memories.  Ramlah  was  one  of 
the   crusaders'    important    depots.      A    large    ruined 


OF    ADDISON    COFFIN.  289 

ehurt'li,  and  a  well  preserved  iuassiv(^  stone  tower  still 
remain  to  tell  their  story.  There  is  a  grand  view  from 
the  old  town.  AVe  slept  at  a  German  hotel,  found 
good,  clean  beds  and  German  food.  In  tlu^  early 
mornine:  we  started  for  Jerusalem.  It  would  take  a 
book  to  describe  all  the  historic  and  interesting  places 
and  events  on  the  road,  such  as  the  scene  of  Samson's 
exploit  with  the  foxes,  the  valley  of  Ajalon  and 
Joshua's  long  day,  Latroon  an<l  other  strongholds  of 
the  olden  time  of  the  C'liisaders,  Kirjath-Jearim  and 
its  events,  Xioopolis,  Ain  Kairaini,'the  birthplace  of 
John  the  Baptist,  Emmaus,  near  which  runs  the  brook 
from  which  David  chose  the  stones  to  slay  Goliath  of 
Gath,  tomb  of  Samuel  and  a  score  more. 

Contrary  to  all  my  expectations  the  approach  to 
Jerusalem  was  not  as  sensational  and  exciting  as  my 
childhood  dreams  had  pictured;  we  could  not  see  th-? 
city  until  within  thirty  rods  of  the  north  corner  of  the 
wall  near  Jaffa  -ate.  A  new  city  is  building  up  to 
the  north  and  west  that  hid  the  wall  as  we  approach(.'d 
from  that  side.  We  stopped  in  the  new  city  at  the 
Howard  hotel  in  view  of  the  Jaifa  gate  and  tower.  It 
was  afternoon  when  we  arrived,  but  we  soon  started 
out  with  a  native  Greek  church  (Jhristian  as  giiide  and 
interpreter,  Elias  Salmon,  who  spoke  American  well. 
We  entered  the  city  at  the  Jaffa  gate,  went  through 
the  street  of  David,  Christian  street,  two  or  three  mar- 


290  LIFE    AND    TRAVELS 

ket  streets,  to  the  chnrcli  of  the  Xativity  and  back 
through  the  bazaars  with  our  stock  of  reverence  for 
the  holy  city  rapidly  going  down.  We  were  astonished 
and  disgusted  with  the  loathsome  animals,  dogs,  donk- 
eys, camels,  cows,  sheep  and  goats,  and  the  throngs  of 
dirty,  degraded  people,  with  every  kind  of  a  horrid 
smell  that  can  be  imagined,  and  were  ready  to  say  that 
all  our  toil  and  travel  had  been  in  vain.  That  night 
in  comparing  notes  all  united  in  one  thing,  that 
Jerusalem  was  the  dirtiest  city  we  had  ever  seen,  and 
that  the  beautiful  ideal  pictures  of  early  life  were 
ruined,  and  Ave  were  so  stirred  up  in  mind  and  spirit, 
that  we  did  not  sleep  well,  but  we  saved  oureelves  from 
condemning  it  too  hastily. 

Next  morning  we  set  out  for  Jericho  and  the 
Dead  Sea.  Older  tourists  and  our  guide  advised  this 
as  a  remedy  for  our  disgust  with  what  we  had  seen. 
the  trip  was  made  on  horseback.  AVe  passed  Gethse- 
naane  around  the  south  end  of  the  Mount  of  Olives,  by 
Bethany,  then  through  hills  and  low  mountains,  past 
the  spot  where  Christ  laid  the  parable  of  the  Good 
Samaritan,  and  a  more  fitting  place  could  not  be  found. 
We  passed  the  brook  Chereth  where  the  prophet  hid 
from  his  enemies,  a  thousand  feet  below  the  mountain 
road  upon  which  we  were  traveling.  Suddenly  at  a 
turn  in  the  road,  we  came  in  sight  of  the  valley  of  the 
Jordan,  the  Dead  Sea,  the  Mountains  of  Moab  and  Mt. 


OF    ADDISON    COFFIN.  291 

Kel)(..  The  sceiic  was  wonderful,  and  so  many  events 
rushed  through  the  memory  that  it  was  a  partial  eom- 
penisation  for  the  disappointment  at  Jerusalem; 
though  the  wide  plain  of  the  Jordan  was  nearly  deso- 
late, the  mountains  all  around  were  naked  and  bare, 
there  was  something  gTand  in  the  history  of  all  the  eye 
could  see. 

"We  ^'isited  the  site  of  Jericdio  and  found  that 
scarcely  a  fragment  remains,  save  the  wonderful  foun- 
tain that  was  inside  its  walls;  it  comes  out  from  under 
a  heavy  archway  from  under  the  hill,  it  is  clear  and 
pure  and  will  fill  a  fifteen  inch  pipe  all  the  time.  The 
fountain  is  what  made  Jericho  such  a  noted  city  in 
Joshua's  day.  i^ot  a  living  thing  was  seen  on  the 
barren  hill  where  the  city  stood.  Two  miles  away 
there  is  a  miserable  dirty,  flea  and  bug  infested  village 
that  bears  the  name.  Fortunately  for  tourists,  the 
Germans  have  built  a  nice,  comfortable  hotel,  where 
we  lodged,  but  the  evening  was  disturbed  by  the  liide- 
ous  shouts  and  discordant  sound  of  drum  and  horn  in 
the  hands  of  pilgrims,  who  were  returning-  from  a 
shrine  called  Job's  tomb.  They  were  a  Avild,  repulsive 
kine-  rabble,  dirty,  ragged,  l>eggarlv  beings. 

In  the  early  morning  we  left  the  hotel  and  start- 
d  for  the  Dead  Sea,  two  hours'  ride  across  the  deserted 
and  desolate  valley.  As  we  approached  the  sea  we 
saw  and  passed  among  peculiar-looking  sand  hills  and 


J  00 


e( 


292  LIFE    AND    TRAVELS 

irregular  ridges,  showing  that  the  sea  had  once  covered 
much  larger  area  than  now,  and  those  hills  were  the 
old  shore  lines.  When  we  reached  the  sea,  another 
shadow  came  over  our  dreams.  All  had  pictured  in 
childhood  a  dark,  silent  body  of  water,  surrounded  by 
black,  frowning  cliifs  and  caverns,  all  gloomy  and  hor- 
rible. Instead,  we  stood  on  the  shore  of  a  sparkling 
lake,  with  a  white-pebbled  bank,  the  waves  gently 
rippling  at  our  feet,  no  cliffs  near,  the  mountains  sunlit 
and  brown  like  all  others  in  the  country;  every  thing- 
different  from  our  ideals.  It  was  true  all*  was  silent; 
there  Avas  no  noise  of  insect,  reptile  or  bird,  but  the 
stillness  was  soft  and  soothing:  there  was  more  of  rev- 
erence than  of  terror. 

As  the  custom  is,  a  part  of  the  company  went  in 
bathing,  and  instead  of  swimming,  just  floated  on  the 
surface  on  account  of  the  density  of  the  water.  My 
friend,  John  Van  Lindley,  went  in  and  could  not  get 
under  water  until  he  jumped  up  and  went  down  head 
flrst,  and  then  only  for  a  moment.  A  stout  English 
lady  made  long  and  persistent  efforts  to  go  under,  but 
failed.  She  floated  like  a  cork  and  was  very  much 
worried  at  the  failure.  From  the  sea  we  rode  four 
miles  to  Joshua's  ford  of  the  Jordan  river,  and  here 
was  another  disappointment.  It  was  just  a  common 
muddy-looking  river,  nothing  sacred,  holy  or  wonder- 
ful in  sight.     In  places  the  mud  of  a  recent  overflow 


OF    ADDISON    COFFIN.  293 

was  not  dry.  The  river  was  thirty  yards  wide  and 
twenty  feet  deep,  llowing  live  to  seven  miles  an  hour, 
and  we  were  four  miles  from  its  mouth.  The  shore 
is  lined  with  a  thick  growth  of  small  trees  and  brush, 
much  like  other  rivers.  Though  disappointing  to  the 
eye,  it  was  none  the  less  interesting  on  accoimt  of  its 
wonderful  history  in  connection  with  the  human  race, 
the  course  of  empire  and  the  rise  and  fall  of  the  king- 
doms. 

Before  we  had  made  half  the  distance  from  the 
sea  to  the  river,  all  who  had  bathed  began  to  twist  and 
squirm  in  their  saddles.  The  salt  brine  on  their  backs 
was  almost  unbearable.  My  friend's  head  especially 
was  feeling  exceedinglv  unpleasant.  When  we 
reached  the  river  thev  did  not  stand  on  the  bank  hesi-. 
tating,  but  made  haste  to  plunge  in  and  get  rid  of  the 
salt  of  the  Dead  sea.  There  is  no  trace  of  the  old  ford 
now.  The  deposit  of  thirty  centuries  has  filled  the 
valley  many  feet  deep,  and  there  are  no  fords  for  many 
miles  up  the  river.  The  recent  overflow  had  left  a  de- 
posit about  as  thick  as  common  writing  paper.  It  was 
drpng  and  curling  up,  and  had  a  slight  alkali  taste, 
and  was  a  yellowish  brown  in  color. 

Upon  returning  to  the  hotel  tired  and  hungry, 
we  lay  down  earlv  and  had  a  good  night's  rest.  The 
next  morning  we  had  a  rr.ugh  ride  back  to  Bethany, 
where  wt  took  lunch,  and  rested  in  the  shade  of  some 

19 


294  LIFE    AND    TRAVELS 

olive  trees  by  the  wayside,  then  visited  the  house  o± 
Mary  and  Martha.  It  belongs  to  the  period  of  Simon 
at  Jaffa.  Sixty  miles  up  a  small  ravine  on  the  east  side 
of  the  Mount  of  Olives  are  many  old  tombs  cut  in  the 
rock,  from  one  of  which  Lazarus  was  raised  from  the 
dead.  We  ascended  the  east  side  of  Olivet,  by  a  very 
rough,  stony  path  to  the  t(jp,  where  are  several  build- 
ings, including  an  old  Turkish  tower  and  minaret. 
From,  the  top  of  the  tower  there  is  the  finest  view  of 
sacred  and  wonderful  ])laces  in  all  Palestine.  To  the 
east  is  the  Dead  sea,  to  the  west  the  Mediterranean, 
before  and  beneath  is  Jerusalem,  which  lies  at  an  in- 
cline, so  we  saw  all  its  streets,  houses,  walls  and  the 
Mosque  of  Omar  as  the  central  figure.  This  view  was 
so  impressive  that  my  feeling  of  disappointment 
measurably  left  me,  and  I  began  to  see  things  in  a  new 
light,  and  the  whole  scene  took  on  a  different  coloring. 
The  place  where  the  tower  stood  was  ])robably 
the  spot  where  Christ  stood  when  he  wept  over  the 
doomed  city  with  its  millions  of  inhabitants,  and  while 
I  was  gazing  in  awe  at  Jerusalem  as  it  is.  my  mind 
was  filled  with  this  thought,  '^What  might  have  been," 
if  Jei-usalem  had  received  the  Savior,  and  I  could  not 
refrain  from  tears  when  all  the  past  came  up  in  mem- 
ory. The  descent  on  the  west  w^as  so  steep  and  rough 
we  went  down  on  foot,  as  far  as  Gethsemane,  where 
we  stopped  an  hour  to  examine  the  sacred  spot.     It  is 


OF    ADDISON    COFFIN.  295 

now  enclosed  by  a  wall  and  iron  grating,  so  people 
cannot  carry  all  the  earth  away,  a  sad  necessity,  for 
thousands  of  visitors  were  annually  carrying  away  a 
handful  of  the  sacred  soil. 

We  returned  to  our  hotel  with  very  dilferent  feel- 
ings from  those  we  had  on  leaving,  and  the  next  day 
walked  more  than  half  around  the  city  on  the  wall; 
we  could  look  down  in  the  streets  without  wading 
through  the  muck  and  garbage.  We  could  also  see  the 
noted  houses,  churches  and  sacred  places.  From  the 
northeast  corner  we  looked  upon  Calvary,  on  the  east 
side  we  looked  into  the  valley  of  Jehoshaphat,  where 
Absalom's  pillar  is  cut  out  of  the  solid  rock,  and  has 
remained  through  all  the  vicissitudes  of  time  unbroken 
and  well  preserved.  It  is  nearly  fifty  feet  high  and 
stands  out  as  a  landmark.  Lower  down  we  saw  the 
tomb  of  Jehoshaphat,  with  a  large  chamber  that 
opens  into  secret  caves  and  passages  not  yet  explored. 
Then  we  saw  the  pyramid  of  Zachariah.  This  con- 
sists of  a  solid  block  of  stone  sixteen  feet  wide  and 
deep,  twenty-nine  feet  high,  and  hewn  out  of  the  solid 
cliff,  with  a  broad  passage  all  around  its  base.  The 
face  of  this  block  is  beautifully  ornamented  and  it  is 
held  in  great  reverence  by  the  Jews,  especially  by  the 
remnant  of  the  captivity,  who  still  live  in  the  valley 
of  the  Euphrates  and  eastern  Arabia.  From  the 
corner  at  the  temple  grounds,  we  looked  south  on  the 


296  LIFE    AND    TRAVELS 

slope  of  the  mount  and  saw  thousands  of  white  stones, 
marking  the  ^aves  of  Jews  who  have  been  buried 
there  through  many  centuries.  On  the  other  side  the 
scenes  froni  the  wall  were  very  interesting,  but  not 
like  the  eastern. 

After  view^ing  the  city  from  the  wall  we  ven- 
tured on  a  general  survey.  At  first  the  streets  seemed 
intricate  and  confusing;  many  of  them  are  steep  and 
have  a  succession  of  stone  steps,  others  are  vaulted 
over  and  covered  with  houses.  The  principal  ones  are 
pretty  well  defined  and  easily  followed,  but  all  are 
very  narrow.  The  Street  of  David  is  but  sixteen  feet 
wide,  with  no  sidewalk.  It  starts  from  the  Jaifa  gate 
and  goes  eastward  to  the  temple  grounds,  and  is  lined 
with  shops,  stores,  gToceries,  fancv  bazaars,  manu- 
factories of  trinkets  and  tovs,  shops  where  shoes  and 
sandles,  in  endless  variety,  are  to  be  found,  and  a  few 
rooms  in  which  primitive  silk  weaving  is  going  on. 

We  went  to  St.  Stephen's  gate  near  the  north 
corner  on  the  east  side,  and  started  westward,  and 
passed  thrcaigh  a  very  interesting  part  of  the  city. 
We  went  through  St.  Anne's  church.  Xear  it  on  the 
other  side  Avas  a  deserted  puddle  of  stagnant  water, 
said  to  mark  the  Pool  of  Bethesda.  Then  came  the 
Chapel  of  Scourging  and  the  Street  Via  Dolorosa, 
along  which  a  detestable  superstition  locates  the 
'fourteen   stations  of  the  cross,"   each  of  which  is 


OF    ADDISON    COFFIN.  ^97 

visited  by  multitudes  of  ignorant,  deluded  people,  from 
which  we  turned  away  in  disgust  and  pity.  We  saw 
the  Convent  of  the  Sisters  of  Zion,  which  contains  the 
Ecco  Homo  Arch,  a  fragment  of  the  Judgment  Hall 
of  Pontius  Pilate.  From  the  roof  of  that  building 
Jerusalem  and  the  temple  can  be  seen  to  great  ad- 
vantage. It  is  probably  the  l)est  view  in  the  city. 
Christian  street  deseiwes  especial  notice.  It  runs  from 
David's  street  towards  Damascus  gate,  and  unites  with 
the  one  from  St.  Stephen's.  ^N'ear  to  the  Jaffa  gate  we 
turned  to  the  right  and  ascended  Mount  Zion,  passed 
the  tower  of  Hippicus,  when  we  came  to  one  of  the 
cleaner  portions  of  the  city.  There  are  several 
churches  on  Mount  Zion.  The  view  from  the  top  of 
the  Armenian  church  is  fine. 

The  trip  through  these  streets,  and  the  scenes 
from  the  lookouts,  had  given  us  quite  a  correct  idea 
of  the  lay  of  the  city,  so  we  now  explored  the  corners 
and  outlying  portions,  and  a'ot  a  clear  impression  of 
the  character  of  the  inhabitants,  and  thus  received  a 
better  understanding  of  the  time  coming  when  the 
^'Sanctuary  shall  be  cleansed." 

We  \dsited  the  Mosque  of  Omai",  or  Haram,  as  the 
Turks  call  it.  The  description  I  had  read  prepared 
me  to  see  a  very  l)eautiful  edifice,  but  when  we  en- 
tered the  building  illumined  by  the  morning  sun,  I 
was  amazed  and  bewildered  at  the  dazzling  splendor 


298  LIFE    AND    TRAVELS 

that  met  the  eye  on  every  side.  When  I  stood  by  the 
dome  of  the  rock,  the  Holy  of  Holies,  where  the  ark  of 
the  covenant  once  stood,  a  feeling  of  solemn  awe  came 
over  me,  and  I  felt  as  if  the  place  were  holy  still.  I 
had  see'n  the  church  of  St.  Peter's  in  Rome,  St.  Paul's 
and  Westminster  Abbey  in  London,  Notre  Dame  and 
the  Confessional  in  Paris,  the  Cathedral  at  Strasburg, 
and  many  other  churches,  some  of  which  were  more 
vast  and  imposing  in  size,  but  nothing  had  ever  ap- 
proached in  splendor  to  what  the  Mosque  of  Omar  is 
inside  its  walls.  The  Mohammedans  have  lavished  un- 
told millions  in  beautifying  their  sacred  shrine.  All 
the  artistic  skill  of  western  civilization,  united  with 
the  voluptuous  imagination  of  the  east,  has  been  com- 
bined in  producing  an  object  not  surpassed  by  any 
age,  or  people.  The  venerable  High  Priest  and 
Patriarch  was  very  kind  in  answering  question?,  and 
seemed  interested  in  our  country  and  our  rapid  na- 
tional expansion.  The  two  hours  spent  with  him  in 
that  wonderful  building,  on  that  sacred  spot,  v^ll  not 
be  forgotten,  nor  can  I  think  of  him  but  as  a  brother 
in  the  hope  of  immortalitv. 

The  Jews  have  several  synagogues  in  the  city, 
one  more  noted  than  the  others,  its  green  dome  is  a 
distinctive  mark  in  looking  down  on  the  city  from  the 
Mount  (yf  Olives.  It  holds  some  very  ancient  and 
hadscaiielv  inscribed  rolls  of  the  Old  Testament.     The 


OF    ADDISON    OOFFIN.  299 

Jews  are  debarred  from  many  privileges  and  subjected 
to  annoying  persecutions  from  the  bigoted  eastern 
Christians,  as  well  as  Moslems.  They  are  not  permitted 
to  enter  the  old  temple  grounds,  but  there  is  one  part 
of  the  old  wall  of  the  temple  enclosure  where  they  are 
allo-wed  to  gather.  "A  retired  place  on  the  outside  of 
the  southwest  wall  of  the  harem  is  the  only  spot  where 
the  children  of  Israel  are  permitted  to  congregate, 
freely  to  gaze  at,  to  touch,  and  to  weep  over  the  old 
stones  hewn  and  laid  there  by  their  ancestors.  The 
foul,  obscure  entrance  to  this  place,  through  a  narrow 
lane,  is  a  fit  type  of  the  abject  misery  of  their  race  here 
and  elsewhere.  Here  they  come  in  numbers,  especi- 
ally on  Fridays.  Jews  of  all  .countries  and  of  all  de- 
grees, rich  and  poor,  men  and  women,  some  in  velvet 
and  rare  furs  and  some  in  squalid  rags,  bring  with 
them  their  Old  Testaments,  which  they  place  in  the 
crevices  between  the  massiA^e  stones,  and  from  them 
read  aloud  the  story  of  their  former  glorious  days,  con- 
fessing their  sins  with  tears  and  loud  lamentations;  re- 
citing touching  prayers  and  calling  upon  ''The  Go<l 
of  Abraham,  Isaac  and  Jacob,''  to  remember  and  ful- 
fill His  ancient  promises  to  His  chosen  people.  Those 
standing  close  to  the  revered  wall  rest  their  hands  upon 
it  sobbing,  while  those  further  off  stretch  out  loving 
hands  to  touch  its  stones.  Old  women  sit  upon  the 
ground  reading  or  reciting  the  promises,  and  stop  to 


300  LIFE    AND    TRAVELS 

wipe  away  the  tears  that  stream  down  their  wrinkled 
faces."  As  I  stood  gazing  upon  this  strange,  sad  scene, 
there  came  again  the  voice  to  my  mind,  ''What  might 
have  been,"  instead  of  all  this  sorrow. 

Outside  the  city  for  many  miles  around  every 
valley,  rock  and  hill  has  some  connection  with  historic 
events  of  the  Holy  City,  and  it  is  hard  to  make  a  selec- 
tion when  there  is  not  time  to  see  all.  We  began  our 
outside  excursions  by  visiting  Bethlehem  and  Solo- 
mon's Pools.  We  passed  several  modern  villages  built 
by  the  Germans,  French  and  Russians,  each  national- 
ity having  large  hospices  where  the  throngs  of  pil- 
grims find  rest  and  shelter  at  small  cost. 

At  Bethlehem  we  saw  the  ruins  of  the  inn  that 
was  ''full"  when  Joseph  and  Mary  arrived,  also  the 
half  cave  mangers  under  an  overhanging  rock,  in  one 
of  which  the  young  babe  was  laid  when  born.  These 
mangers  are  now  surrounded  and  covered  by  an  im- 
mense structure,  resulting  from  the  union  of  several 
churches;  as  in  many  other  places  there  is  much 
bigotry  and  superstition  connected  with  the  place. 
Froni  the  east  end  of  the  hill  on  which  the  town  stands, 
across  a  narrow,  deep  valley,  we  saw  a  broad  plateau  of 
a  few  thousand  acres,  on  which  the  shepherds  were 
watching  their  flocks  the  night  when  Christ  was  bom. 
They  had  al)Out  one  and  a  half  miles  to  go  to  find  the 
babe,  then  to  return  across  the  valley  to  their  flocks. 


OF    ADDISON    COFFIN.  301 

That  plateau  is  a  sheep  and  goat  pasture  today.  There 
were  thousands  in  sight  when  we  were  there,  and  thus 
has  it  been  through  all  the  intervening  centuries,  and 
ahvays  will  be,  because  it  pays.  When  w^e  turned 
aw^ay  from  Bethlehem,  we  were  satisfied  that  the 
Scripture  is  true  concerning  it  and  its  part  in  history. 

Solomon's  Pools,  three  in  number,  are  several 
miles  further  on,  and  are  supplied  by  a  fountain  that 
would  fill  an  eight-inch  pipe.  An  earthquake  frac- 
tured them,  so  they  hold  l)ut  little  w^ater,  yet  the  un- 
der ground  aoueducts  are  perfect,  and  furnish  some 
water  to  the  city.  The  reservoirs  are  large  and 
massive,  showing  the  style  of  concrete  masonry  of  that 
time,  giving  us  a  key  to  compare  the  age  of  ruins. 
Here  is  masonry  of  Solomon's  epoch,  while  iVlexan- 
dria  showed  that  of  Alexander's  day,  the  pyramids 
that  of  prehistoric  period,  and  so  we  may  learn  as  by 
an  alphabet  the  era  of  ruins  bv  the  character  of  their 
masonry. 

On  our  return  we  stopped  at  Kachel's  tomb,  and 
called  up  the  history  of  the  Hebrews  since  she  was  laid 
at  rest,  not  only  of  that  nation,  but  the  whole  human 
race.  This  tomb  is  and  has  been  held  in  reverence 
through  all  time,  and  has  always  been  kept  in  repair. 
Its  present  form  is  a  solid  pyramid  of  stone.  It  has 
been  repaired  bv  the  Moslems.  At  the  tomb  the  road 
divides.  The  main  road  goes  to  Hebron  and  a  horse 
path  turns  to  the  right,   leading  to  Ala  Karim,  the 


302  LIFE    AND    TRAVELS 

birthplace  of  John  the  Baptist.  It  is  a  beautiful  village, 
surroimded  by  green  fields,  orchards,  gardens  and  vine- 
yards, the  prettiest  rural  spot  in  Palestine.  There  is 
an  ancient  church  here  that  was  built  in  the  fifth  cen- 
tury. It  ha^  since  been  enlarged,  and  was  quite  im- 
posing as  seen  from  the  hills.  It  belongs  to  the  Greek 
church.  The  Sisters  of  Zion  have  a  school  for  girls 
near  the  village,  which  adds  to  the  interest.  Another 
route,  which  is  very  rocky,  passes  a  Greek  monastery, 
and  comes  into  the  Jaffa  road  near  the  city. 

In  going  out  by  the  Damascus  gate,  we  turned  to 
the  right  from  the  old  road  and  ascended  a  hill,  where, 
near  the  summit,  there  is  a  small  bench  or  plateau  of 
a  fourth  of  an  acre ;  there  we  Avent  up  a  steeper  gTade 
to  the  top,  where  there  was  a  circular  area  of  about  one 
acre,  shaped  like  a  shallow  wash  pan  turned  lx)ttom 
upward.  This  is  Mount  Calvary.  From  the  top  we 
could  have  seen  into  the  outer  court-  of  the  temple. 
At  the  foot  of  the  hill  near  where  the  ascent  is  made 
there  is  a  low  cliff  of  rock  with  a  crescent  shaped 
garden  of  three-fourths  of  an  acre.  At  the  left  of  the 
garden  entrance  are  several  tombs  cut  in  the  low  cliff, 
which  in  their  finish  show  they  belong  to  the  day  of 
Christ. 

When  we  climbed  the  hill  to  the  little  plateau, 
we  saw  the  place  where  the  women  stood  ''afar  off" 
during  the  crucifixion,  yet  could  see  and  hear  all  that 


OF    ADDISON    COFFIN.  803 

was  said  and  done.  On  toj)  there  is  room  for  a  thou- 
sand people  to  stand  and  the  hill  is  nearly  solid  rock, 
and  has  not  changed  and  conld  not  change,  so  we  came 
away  satisfied  that  we  had  seen  Calvary.  It  was 
natural  and  easy,  when  Christ's  body  was  taken  downi, 
to  come  to  the  west  end  of  the  little  garden,  turn  in 
and  place  it  in  its  resting  place.  But  what  of  standing 
where  the  crucifixion  took  place?  Every  one  has  his 
own  impressions.  Some  feel  like  and  do  pray,  some 
thank  God  that  they  have  been  permitted  to  stand  on 
the  sacred  spot,  some  shout  and  go  into  ecstatics,  while 
many  others  have  no  feeling  or  do  not  show  it  in  any 
way,  but  to  me  the  place  did  not  seem  more  sacred 
than  any  other;  but  the  thought  of  what  had  gone  out 
through  the  world  from  that  spot  was  almost  over- , 
whelming.  From  there  Christianity  had  gone  forth, 
and  I  seemed  to  look  down  the  centuries  and  see  what 
it  had  done,  and  on  to  the  end  of  what  it  would  do. 

Off  to  the  right  of  the  Damascus  road  beyond 
the  hills  is  the  ^'Tomb  of  the  Kings."  It  is  a  large, 
rock-hewn  chamber  open  to  the  sky,  about  thirty  yards 
square.  The  west  end  of  the  excavation  is  cut  into 
passages  and  curiously  cut  chambers,  niches  and 
shelves  for  the  reception  of  the  sarcophagi,  which  have 
all  long  since  disappeared.  There  is  one  large  cham- 
ber which  has  been  closed  w^ith  a  huge,  rolling  stone, 
which  is  still  standing  in  its  groove  at  the  side  of  the 


301  LIFE    AND    TRAVELS 

entrance.  This  excavation  is  thirty  feet  deep,  and  has 
a  reservoir  in  the  southeast  corner,  which  still  holds 
water.  A  mile  and  a  half  further  on  there  is  a  broad 
high  archway  cut  in  the  face  of  the  hill  \vith  a  broad 
23assage  cut  far  back  in  the  solid  rock,  with  tomb  cham- 
bers cut  in  the  sides.  This  is  the  'Tombs  of  the 
Judges,"  a  dark  and  gloomy  place,  yet  like  that  of 
"The  Kings,"  very  interesting,  and  gives  a  deep  and 
definite  impression  of  the  truthfulness  of  the  Bible 
record. 

The  valley  of  Hinnom  begins  near  the  Jaffa 
gate,  on  the  southwest  side  of  the  city.  It  is  deep  and 
now  dry  and  desolate  looking — Tophet-Gehenna.  It 
runs  southeast  between  Jerusalem  and  the  '^Hill  of 
Evil  Counsel,"  which  is  now  attracting  much  attention 
from  the  fact  that  it  seems  to  cover  what  appears  to 
have  been  an  ancient  subterranean  city.  It  is  now 
being  explored  and  promises  to  be  exceedingly  rich  in 
relics  as  far  back  as  the  'old  Hittite  times.  All  the 
way  down  the  valley  the  hills  are  honey-combed  with 
rock-hewn  chambers,  some  of  the  passages  leading  off 
hundreds  of  yards  into  the  hill,  just  how  far  is  still 
unknown.  It  is  becoming  more  and  more  a  question 
of  when,  by  whom  and  for  what  purpose  those  vast 
subterranean  passages  and  immense  chambers  were 
excavated.  The  three  hills,  Mt.  Zion,  Mt.  Moriah  and 
Mt.  Akra  are  standing  above  a  vast  underground  city. 


OF    ADDISON    COFFIN.  305 

'Jlic  entrance  to  it  is  near  the  I  )ania6eus  gate.  The  ex- 
cavation goes  back  to  the  remotest  antiquity.  Much 
of  the  work  was  done  by  a  lost  race,  possibly  ten  thou- 
sand years  ago.  Some  of  their  methods  of  work  and 
their  tools  tell  a  tale  of  silent  wonder.  At  the  point 
where  the  valley  of  Jehoshaphat  and  Hinnom  unite, 
there  is  a  deep  well,  or  an  artesian  fountain,  which, 
when  there  has  been  a  heavy  continuous  rainfall,  over- 
flows and  sends  a  river  of  water  down  the  valley.  It  is 
supposed  to  be  connected  with  the  p-reat  fountain,  or 
lake,  that  underlies  the  whole  section,  for  in  boring  in 
the  new  city,  an  inexhaustible  fountain  is  struck  at  a 
depth  of  two  to  three  hundred  fe^t,  and  St.  Mary's 
fountain,  near  the  Golden  gate,  is  a  regular  intermit- 
tent spring  from  the  great  fountain. 

On  the  slope  of  Olivet,  opposite  the  union  of  the 
valleys,  is  the  hospital  of  the  lepers,  where  they  lodge 
and  are  supplied  with  abundance  of  good  bread  and 
water,  but  are  not  permitted  to  enter  the  city,  and  can 
only  stand  outside  on  the  east  and  north  of  the  wall, 
nowhere  else.  Of  their  looks  and  homd  condition  I 
do  not  wish  to  write,  for  it  fills  the  mind  with  inex- 
pressible pity,  loathing  and  horror  to  see  the  frightful 
condition  some  are  in,  dying  by  piecemeal  and  yet 
cannot  die,  suffenng  death  a  hundred  times  before 
it  comes. 

As  the  ]\rosque  of  Omar  is  the  most  beantiful 


306  LIFE    AND    TRAVELS 

tiling  in  Palestine,  so  is  tlie  Cliurcli  of  tlie  Holy  Sepul- 
cher  the  biggest  liumbug  in  all  the  east,  if  not  in  the 
world,  and  the  Christian  nations  should  unite  in  sup- 
pressing it  at  once;  in  fact  we  grew  weaiy  and  dis- 
gusted with  the  senseless  supei*stitions  that  met  us  at 
every  turn,  and  in  every  place.  One  impious  Ameri- 
can prayed  the  Lord  to  send  another  Joshua  to  cleanse 
and  purify  the  land  again.  Yet  there  is  so  much  to  see, 
so  many  Bible  and  historic  memories  called  up  in  and 
around  the  city,  that  we  felt  like  throwing  the  mantle 
of  charity  over  much  that  was  repulsive.  I^otwith- 
standing  there  is  muck  and  mire  in  the  streets,  super- 
stition, bigotry,  sin,  suffering,  sorrow  and  shame  to  be 
met,  it  pays  any  one  well  read  in  the  Bible  and  history 
to  visit  Jerusalem  and  study  its  past  and  present;  for 
as  its  past  has  been  cannected  with  humanity,  its  near 
future  promises  to  become  more  so.  The  slow  but  sure 
building  of  a  new  city  outside  the  wall,  the  steady  in- 
crease of  English  and  American  influence  is  not  with 

out  deep  significance. 

We  left  Jerusalem  and  returned  to  Jaft'a,  and 
there  took  a  steamer  for  Beyroot.  Had  a  pleasant  trip, 
found  a  good  hotel  and  on  the  20th  took  diligence 
drawn  by  six  horses,  three  abreast,  for  Damascus,  over 
a  good  pike  road,  built  by  the  Erench.  We  crossed 
the  Lebanon  amid  a  whirling  snow  storm,  with  all  the 
higher  portion  of  the  range  still  covered  with  many 


OP    ADDISON    COFFiN.  307 

inches  of  the  winter  snow,  and  tor  a  tew  hours  we  suf- 
fered severely  witli  the  cold.  We  hinched  at  Stora, 
beyond  the  mountain,  and  there  took  a  })rivate  carriage 
and  turned  aside  for  the  ruins  of  Baalbec,  where  we 
arrived  at  5  p.  m.,  cokl  and  tired.  As  there  was  no  fire 
at  the  hotel,  we  rebelled  against  su{di  treatment,  and 
by  a  little  positive  reasoning  we  were  soon  supplied 
with  a  large  brazier  full  of  l)urning  cdiarcoal.  We 
were  soon  warmed  and  ready  for  a  hot  supper  served  in 
real  eastern  style. 

Though  late  in  the  day  we  were  so  excited  at 
being  near  the  world's  greatest  wonder  in  the  line  of 
ruins,  that  we  took  a  short  run  to  the  great  temples. 
Our  interest  arose  tc  the  highest  point  of  intensity  as 
we  slowlv  walked  around  and  through  the  fallen  gran- 
deur and  departed  glory.  On  every  side  was  a  mass  of 
wreckage  that  was  so  stupendous  and  bewildering,  thai 
we  stood  and  gazed  upon  it  in  awe.  All  that  we  had 
seen  before  became  dwarfed  into  a  miniature,  the 
mind  was  full  of  astonishment  when  we  realized  that 
all  that  ^vi*eck  was  once  in  the  fonn  of  a  beautiful 
temple.  The  mystery  that  covers  Baalbec  adds  to  the 
impression  made  on  the  mind  at  the  first  sight.  We 
recognize  the  fact  that  the  foundations  of  these  ruins 
were  laid  by  a  lost  race,  who  left  no  other  monument 
to  tell  that  they  had  been. 

When  darkness  came  we  returned  to  our  brazier 


308 


LIFE    AND    TKAVELS 


of  coals  and  talked  long  over  tlie  new  experience,  and 
that  night  I  dreamed  of  wandering  back  through  the 
infinite  past  and  lived  with  the  people  who  are  now 
silent  in  the  dust,  and  who  have  left  nothing  but  ruined 
towers  and  temples;  and  realized  that  thev  had  lived 
and  died  as  this  generation  w^a^  living,  moving  where 
now,— 

''The  spirits  of  the  desert  dwell, 
A\'Tiere  eastern  e^randeur  shone 
And  vultures  scream,  hyenas  yell, 
'Round  Beauty's  mouldering  throne." 

I  was  suddenly  called  back  to  earth  by  the  clang  of  the 
brazier,  and  a  big,  burly  Syrian  dumped  his  charcoal 
on  the  fire,  calling  out  we  knew  not  what,  but  supposed 
it  must  be  breakfast,  and  so  we  arose  to  find  a  ixdsty, 
cool,  bad  morning.  After  we  had  breakfasted  we 
started  out  in  spite  of  the  rain  to  see  the  ruins  more  in 
detail.  We  went  to  the  northwest  side,  where  we  saw 
and  touched  three  great  stones.  They  are  13x13x62 
feet  long,  and  are  on  top  of  the  prehistoric  Avail  about 
fifty  feet  above  the  foundation.  They  have  been 
transported  three-quarters  of  a  mile,  and  lifted  to  their 
place.  There  is  no  mortar  or  cement  visible,  yet  the 
joints  are  so  perfect  that  I  could  not  thrust  the  point 
of  a  little  blade  of  my  pocket  knife  an  eighth  of  an 
inch  into  the  joints  at  any  place.  Just  beneath  these 
large  stones  are  many  12  feet  thick  and  3(i  to  36  long. 


OF    ADDISON    COFFIN.  309 

In  the  quarry  we  could  see  the  place  where  the  three 
large  stones  were  cut  out,  and  alongside  a  fourth  one 
has  been  quarried  and  left  lying.  It  is  14x15  and  72 
feet  long.  It  is  finished  out  but  never  moved.  Why, 
tradition  does  not  tell,  and  history  is  silent.  I  climbed 
to  it  and  walked  its  length.  One  can  only  realize  its 
enormous  size  by  standing  on  it.  The  quarries  extend 
over  many  acres  and  in  places  are  fifty  feet  deep. 

At  the  southwest  corner  there  is  a  portion  of  the 
wall  125  feet  high,  the  highest  in  the  ruins.  The 
great  open,  inner  court  is  450x400.  On  the  west  side 
there  are  no  chaml^ers;  on  the  other  three  sides  there 
has  been  a  second  massive  wall  thirty  to  forty  feet 
from  the  outer  one.  The  space  between  has  been  built 
in  large  chambers,  many  of  them  showing  great 
beauty  in  design  and  finish.  The  surface  of  the  inner 
wall  is  adorned  ^^dth  the  highest  architectural  beauty 
of  the  various  nations  who  held  control  On  the  south 
side  we  saw  the  six  great  columns  that  are  still  stand- 
ing, the  landmark  of  the  ruins.  They  are  84  feet  high, 
7  feet  in  diameter,  and  are  held  together  and  to  the 
wall  by  blocks  of  stone  6x6x12  feet.  The  tops  are  125 
feet  above  the  foundation  of  the  portico.  The  temple 
of  Jupiter,  wdiich  stands  near  the  temple  of  the  Sun, 
on  the  south  side,  is  in  better  state  of  preservation,  but 
smaller.  It  has  been  very  beautifully  ornamented 
and  was  built  at  a  later  day,  probably  by  the  Pheni- 
cians. 

20 


310  LIFE    AND    TRAVELS 

Everywhere  we  were  impressed  with  the  vastness 
of  the  structures.  The  builders  were  our  superiors  in 
mechanical  skill  and  architecture.  The  sculptures 
were  perfect  in  their  kind  and  more  ideal  than  at  anv 
later  day.  The  lost  race  seems  to  have  been  giants  in 
every  particular.  The  evidence  left  is  convincing. 
When  the  Greek  came  with  his  refinement,  he  built  on 
the  prehistoric  foundations  that  had  not  been  wrecked 
by  war  and  earthquake;  to  the  Greek  structure  was 
given  Greek  adorning.  When  the  Roman  came  he 
added  Roman  art  and  beauty,  and  at  last  when  the 
Turk  came  he  began  to  destroy,  and  the  earthquake 
of  1759  finished  the  ruin. 

There  is  as  much  of  the  prehistoric  temple  under 
ground  as  above,  and  that  part,  though  choked  and 
filled  with  rubbish,  is  too  strong  for  even  earthquake 
power.  Stand  where  we  would  inside,  or  outside,  the 
walls,  or  on  the  hills  overlooking,  the  impression  was 
the  same,  that  of  wonder  and  astonishment,  and  the 
question  came  up,  why  should  the  grandest  thing  of 
earth  be  ruined  by  the  bloody  hand  of  war?  In  all  de- 
scnptions  I  have  seen  given  by  historians  and  tourists, 
the  half  has  not  been  told,  nor  can  it  be.  One  must 
stand  in  the  great  court,  surrounded  by  the  vast  wreck- 
age and  stand  on  the  tottering  wall  and  gaze  on  the 
whole  scene  to  fully  comprehend  what  Baalbec  was  in 
its  glory,  and  what  it  is  in  ruin. 


OF    ADDISON    COFFIN.  311 

Like  all  other  ancient  ruins,  the  neighboring  hills 
and  cliffs  are  full  of  rock-hewn  chambers  and  passages, 
and  it  pays  the  trouble  to  visit  some  of  them ;  each  na- 
tion has  cut  its  own  favorite  form  of  chamber  and 
passage,  sometimes  they  are  in  proximity  and  in  in- 
teresting contrast.  To  the  east,  in  the  valley,  are 
many  rock  chambers  ingeniously  cut  so  no  water  will 
get  in  from  the  winter  rains,  suggesting  the  idea  that 
they  may  have  been  graneries  or  storage  places. 

We  returned  to  Stora  in  a  heavy  rain-storm,  then 
took  diligence  and  reached  Damascus  near  night,  and 
were  again  (piite  cold,  for  the  Anti-Lebanon  range  of 
mountains  was  covered  with  snow,  and  it  was  melting 
very  fast.  Another  brazier  of  glowing  coals  gave  us 
grateful  relief  and  a  good  night's  rest,  though  at  all 
hours  we  heard  the  rushing  of  many  waters,  the  hotel 
b^ing  on  the  bank  of  a  river.  We  spent  two  days  in 
and  around  the  city.  In  one  resi>ect  it  was  disap- 
pointing. It  has  many  marks  of  beauty,  and  not  many 
of  age.  It  had  nothing  startling  or  sensational,  but 
much  that  Avas  very  interesting.  I  marvel  not  that  it 
is  the  oldest  city  in  the  world,  for  there  is  no  better 
place  for  one.  It  is  in  the  midst  of  a  lovely  fertile 
plain,  irrigated  by  two  mountain  rivers  of  pure  spark- 
ling water,  which  never  fails,  with  a  healthy,  tem- 
perate climate,  and  so  long  as  men  dwell  on  earth  some 
will  live  at  Damascus. 


312  LIFE    AND    TRAVELS 

We  drove  far  out  in  the  valley  amoug  gi'een 
wheat  and  rye  fields,  through  a  wilderness  of  mul- 
berry and  fruit  orchards  and  vineyards,  to  where 
Paul  was  smitten  down.  On  return  we  drove  around 
the  city  to  see  the  remains  of  the  old  wall;  we  saw 
the  window  through  which  Paul  was  let  down,  near 
to  the  Jerusalem  gate.  AVe  walked  the  whole  length 
of  the  street  called  Straight;  it  varies  from  a  straight 
line  just  enough  to  prevent  one  from  seeing  through 
from  either  end,  ])ut  in  standing  in  the  middle  it 
lo<>ks  perfectly  straight.  AVe  walked  many  hours 
through  the  noisy  markets,  bazaars,  wheat  bins,  camel 
and  donkey  market,  and  passed  through  the  long 
street  where  silk  weaving  is  carried  on,  and  the  prim- 
itive loom  is  plied  by  hundreds  of  sad-faced  women. 
Then  we  visited  the  street  given  to  the  manufacture 
of  toys  and  litth^  fancy  articles  to  sell  to  tourists 
and  strangers.  It  is  proverbial  all  over  the  east 
that  you  must  never  offer  a  Damascus  merchant  more 
than  one-third  his  price,  or  you  will  be  deceived;  the 
native  guides  will  run  travelers  into  the  shops  to  get 
them  smndlcil  in  trade  instead  of  sho\ving  them  the 
city. 

The  day  before  we  an-ived,  one  of  the  singular 
events  occurred  that  comes  in  Mahomedan  coun- 
tries at  irregular  periods,  and  always  among  the  de- 
scendants of  Esau.     Suddenly  a  man  among  the  day 


OF    ADDISON    COFFIN.  313 

laborers  felt  himself  inspired  to  sing  the  songs  of 
praise  considered  sacred  by  all  Mahomedans.  He 
went  to  the  priest  of  the  principal  niosqne,  and  asked 
to  go  to  the  minaret  at  midnight  to  sing;  at  first 
the  priest  donbted  his  sanitv,  for  he  knew  the  man 
had  no  voice  for  singing,  whereupon  the  man  began 
singing  with  such  supernatural  melody  that  all  men 
were  amazed.  Tn  answer  as  to  when  and  how  he 
learned  the  sacred  songs,  his  reply  was:  ^^\llah  (God) 
taught  me."  So  he  was  permitted  to  sing,  and  the 
\vhole  city  was  electrified  with  the  sublime  music  that 
came  from  the  lofty  minaret  for  an  hour  beginning 
at  midnight.  The  tAvo  nights  we  were  there  the  man 
sang  his  sacred  songs,  and  though  they  were  in  the 
Syrian  tongue,  I  had  never  heard  such  soft  and  per- 
fect melody  come  from  human  lips.  The  contrast 
between  his  voice  and  his  fellow-countrymen  was 
greater  than  that  between  a  wood  lark  and  a  cawing 
crow.  It  was  deeply  interesting  to  me,  for  it  seemed  as 
though  God  had  not  wholly  cast  ofi  the  children  of 
Esau,  and  in  the  day  of  restitution  might  call  in  the 
seed  of  Abraham. 

On  the  return  from  Damascus  we  again  suffered 
from  cold;  on  the  Anti-Lebanon  range  a  bleak  \vind 
blew  through  the  pass,  and  on  the  main  range  there 
had  l>eeu  eight  inches  more  snow  since  we  passed. 
Soon   after  leaving   Stora,   we   met   a   large   detach- 


314  LIFE    AND    TRAVELS 

ment  of  Turkish  recruits  going  to  Damascus  for  drill 
and  instruction;  thej  were  wild,  rougli-looking  fel- 
lows, and  wei-e  cold  and  noisy,  for  they  had  just 
passed  the  snow  line;  behind  them  came  125  pack 
camels,  roaring  and  bellowing  with  the  cold.  It  was 
a  novel  sight,  and  required  much  skill  on  the  part 
of  our  driver  to  avoid  collisions  with  these  unwieldy 
animals  and  their  bulky  loads.  We  also  met  a  long 
train  of  freight  wagons,  each  wagon  drawn  by  three 
horses  in  tandem  style;  they  were  very  difficult  to  pass, 
for  the  drivers  were  burly  men  and  not  very  accommo- 
dating in  yielding  right  of  way.  Xear  the  summit 
there  were  hundreds  of  wild  mountaineers  shoveling 
snow  into  two-bushel  baskets,  and  carrying  them  on 
their  heads  to  the  top  of  large  stone  houses,  into  which 
the  snoAv  was  dumped  for  summer  use.  Inside  of  the 
houses  there  was  much  shouting  and  yelling  amongst 
those  who  packed  the  snow  into  a  solid  mass;  it  was 
truly  a  wild,  novel  scene;  part  of  the  time  everything 
^vas  obscured  because  enveloped  with  clouds  of  fine, 
drifting  snow  or  frozen  vapor,  and  then  the  snow 
shovelers  would  make  extra  noise  amid  the  whirling 
clouds.  The  ascent  and  passage  was  slow;  as  we  were 
quite  cold,  my  friend  and  I  got  down  and  walked 
and  ran  a  mile  or  more  amid  the  snow,  mist,  clouds 
and  mingled  flashes  of  sunlight,  a  thing  I  would  re- 
commend every  one  to  do  who  has  the  strength,  for 


OF    ADDISON    COFFIN.  315 

it  is  an  experience  that  is  full  of  life  and  exciting 
energy;  the  occasional  glow  of  sunlight  was  charm- 
ing heyond  description. 

It  took  three  hours  to  pass  through  the  snow 
l)elt,  then  we  came  down  into  bright  sunshine,  amid 
green  helds,  orchards  and  gTOves,  the  lower  portion 
of  the  range  being  covered  with  terraced  gardens. 
A  distant  view  showed  many  white  villages  nestled 
among  the  trees  on  the  steeps.  Soon  we  got  sight 
of  Beyroot,  the  broad  valley,  the  bay,  and  the  blue 
sea  beyond.  It  was  near  sundown  when  we  reached 
the  city,  where  we  enjoyed  a  w^arm  room  and  an 
unbroken  night's  rest  in  what  seemed  civilized  society, 
and  found  our  bundles,  which  we  had  left  at  the 
hotel,  all  safe.  Next  morning,  March  25th,  1892, 
we  took  carriage  and  were  driven  over  a  good  pike 
road,  and  in  three  lioui-s  reached  Friends'  Mission 
at  Brumma,  on  a  foothill  of  Mt.  Lebanon,  2,500  feet 
above  the  sea.  We  were  kindly  greeted  by  the 
Friends,  and  found  a  quiet  hotel  and  rest. We  were 
introduced  to  all  the  managers  and  officers  and  many 
of  the  membership,  and  felt  as  though  we  were  in 
touch  with  home  life.  Six  weeks  of  constant  travel 
in  strange  lands,  among  new,  interesting  and  ever- 
changing  scenes,  in  contact  with  different  people, 
together  with  the  effort  made  to  see,  hear  and  re- 
member all,  was  beginning  to  draw  heavily  on  my 


816  LIFE    AND    TRAVELS 

powers  of  endurance,  and  rest  was  needed.  AVe  were 
much  surprised  and  pleased  A\dtli  the  situation,  sur- 
roundings and  prospects  of  the  mission;  everything 
indicated  permanence.  The  buildings  were  all  solid, 
well-built,  stone  structures;  the  grounds  are  being 
improved  and  beautified;  a.  quiet,  home-like  influ- 
ence pervades  the  mission,  which  is  working  out  a 
change  in  that  village  and  also  those  which  surround 
it.  A  vn.de  influence  has  been  gained  over  the  un- 
trained ignorant  mountaineers,  and  it  is  marvelous  to 
see  what  a  door  the  Lord  is  opening  in  that  land  and 
how  He  inspired  Eli  Jones  to  select  that  spot  to  found 
a  mission. 

From  the  buildings  and  from  the  hilltops  near 
bv,  the  scener\-  is  grand  and  beautiful.  All  around 
south,  east  and  north,  are  lofty,  romantic  mountains, 
toned  down  and  hannonized  by  a  soft  blue  haze;  to 
the  west  is  a  wide  expanse  of  the  blue  waters  of 
the  Mediterranean  Sea,  with  the  beautiful  city  of 
Beyroot  and  its  harbor  and  shipping.  Farther  off 
beyond  all,  from  south  to  northwest,  the  central  range 
of  Lebanon  stood  out  in  bold  relief,  covered  with 
snow,  which  gives  a  sense  of  silent,  majestic  grandeur 
to  the  wonderful  filling  in. 

All  around  the  ^dllage,  across  the  mountain  on 
which  it  stands,  and  down  the  long  slopes  on  every 
side,    were     beautiful   gi^o^es  of  young    pine,   inter- 


OF    ADDISON    COFFIN.  817 

mingled  with  tig,  mulberrv  and  olive  orchards,  vine- 
yards, wheat  fields  and  gardens,  all  resting  on  and 
made  by  terraces  bnilt  u})  by  means  of  stone  walls. 
Across  a  ravine  to  the  east,  we  counted  eleven  vil- 
lages, and  down  the  western  slope  five  other  villages, 
flll  suiTonnded  with  orchards,  gardens  and  groves. 
So  beautifully  blended  together  are  nature  and  art, 
that  the  eye  does  not  gTow  weary  with  seeing,  as  in 
ynore  historic  places. 

On  the  Sabbath,  26th,  we  attended  Brumma 
Monthly  Meeting.  William  Allen,  of  England,  was 
present,  and  delivered  a  good  sermon,  which  was 
translated  into  Arabic  by  one  of  the  members,  a 
teacher  in  the  boys'  school.  In  transacting  the  bus- 
iness, there  appeared  to  be  as  much  sound,  practical 
sense  used,  and  as  clear  discernment  manifested,  as 
in  the  average  American  meetings,  and  there  w^as 
real,  living  faith  present.  In  the  evening  there  was 
a  general  collection  of  the  members  in  the  boys'  school 
room,  with  tea  and  lunch  and  a  kindly  greeting,  while 
AVilliam  Allen  gave  an  informal  address. 

After  breakfast  next  morning  we  walked  three 
miles  towards  the  summit  of  the  central  range  to 
another  summit,  from  w^hich  we  had  a  wider  and 
grander  view  of  the  ever-changing  scene,  everything, 
everywhere  intensified  by  the  great  glittering  snow 
fields  in  the  backaround.      Ev  a  kind  invitation  we 


318  LIFE    AND    TRAVELS 

took  lunch  at  1  p.  in.  with  Miss  Ellen  Clayton  and 
Miss  M.  E.  Stephens,  of  England,  the  efficient  man- 
agers of  the  medical  hospital.  Afterward  they  took 
ns  on  a  long  t(3ur  of  inspection,  and  a  long  ramble 
up  and  down  the  side  of  the  mountain,  through  vil- 
lages out  of  sight  from  the  top.  There  was  a  con- 
stant succession  of  surprises;  at  every  turn,  in  and 
across  every  ravine,  there  was  something  new  and 
almost  startling.  By  hundreds  of  years  of  hard  labor 
the  whole  mountain  side  had  been  terraced  and  cul- 
tivated; nearly  ever)^where  grape  vines  were  being 
trained  along  the  walls.  The  houses  were  all  of  stone, 
and  flat  on  top,  built  into  the  side  of  the  terrace;^ 
in  many  cases  we  could  step  on  top  of  the  houses 
from  the  next  terrace  wall.  Children  and  chickens 
abounded,  the  former  black-eyed,  bright  little  fel- 
lows, who  in  infancy  and  early  childhood  are  nearly 
white;  the  chickens  seemed  to  be  a  part  of  the  house- 
hold; eggs  are  abundant  and  cheap  and  universally 
used  by  all  classes. 

The  greatest  wonder  of  the  day  was  a  genuine, 
primitive  bake  oven.  It  was  in  the  shape  of  a  big- 
jug,  with  the  neck  and  upper  part  off.  It  was  cut 
in  solid  rock,  five  feet  deep  and  three  in  diameter, 
and  was  heated  by  dry  grass  pulled  out  of  the  gar- 
dens and  the  twdgs  from  fiiiit  trees  and  the  refuse 
from  priming,     ^^len  the  oven  was  hot,  two  women 


OF    ADDISON    COFFIN,  319 

sat  down  by  it  with  a  tub  of  dough  and  wooden 
trays  as  big-  as  a  c-onimon  dishpan  turned  bottom  u]); 
the  round  of  the  trays  just  tit  the  curve  of  the  oven. 
The  women  took  himps  of  dough  about  the  size  <^i 
a  pint  cup,  and  dexterously  spread  them  into  thvn 
cakes  on  their  trays,  about  fourteen  inches  in  diam- 
eter, then  leaning  over,  reached  down  and  dabbed 
it  to  the  side  of  the  oven;  the  cake  adhered  and 
was  baked  by  the  time  another  was  ready.  These 
cakes,  which  are  made  from  rye,  are  stacked  in  piles, 
and  are  the  bakei-s'  bread  for  Arabs,  and  nearly  all 
Western  Asia  and  Northern  Africa.  When  the  oven 
cools  a  few  handfuls  of  dry  grass  are  thrown  in,  which 
restores  the  heat.  While  watching  this,  allusion  to 
grass  and  the  oven  in  scripture  came  to  mind:  ^*The 
grass  that  to-day  is,  tomon*ow  is  cast  in  the  oven." 
From  the  oven  we  ascended  by  winding  paths  among 
gardens  and  orchards  and  over  walls,  and  learned 
more  than  we  would  have  thought  possible  when  we 
started,  for  we  saw  life  as  it  is,  and  has  been,  for 
4,000  years,  with  no  sign  of  change.  The  spades  and 
mattocks  are  the  same  in  form  as  chiseled  on  the 
monuments  while  the  Hittites  were  in  the  land. 
Some  of  the  foundations  of  the  teiTaces  were  built 
before  the  time  of  Hiram.  When  we  returned  to 
the  hospital  we  were  tired,  but  highly  pleased  with 
the  tour,   and  the  kind  ladies  would  not  let  us  go 


320  LIFE    AND    TRAVELS 

until  we  had  cake  and  a  cup  of  tea,  and  we  promised 
to  pay  the  debt  in  a  similar  manner  if  they  should  ever 
come  to  America. 

One  morning,  by  invitation  of  Miss  Cadburj,  and 
Miss  M.  E.  Harris,  of  England,  who  have  charge 
of  the  girls'  school,  we  went  to  the  school  building  at 
6:30  a.  m.  to  see  the  whole  routine  of  morning  work, 
the  getting  up,  washing,  sweeping,  dusting,  making 
up  of  the  cots,  cleaning  and  refilling  the  olive  oil 
lamps,  and  the  old  fat  Syrian  man  cooking  the  break- 
fast on  a  Syrian  stove  with  one-fourth  the  wood  used 
in  America.  When  the  bell  rang  we  went  to  break- 
fast; the  girls  sat  at  a  long  table,  thirty-two  in  num- 
ber, while  the  teachers'  table  sat  across  the  end  of 
theirs.  The  girls  had  batter  cakes,  dried  and  pre- 
served fruit,  with  Avater  to  sup;  the  most  novel  thing 
was  the  way  the  water  was  drunk.  Tt  was  in  small 
jugs  or  jars,  with  a  s])out  on  one  side  like  a  tea  pot; 
they  took  the  jug  and  held  the  spout  about  two  incbes 
above  the  mouth,  and  poured  the  water  in  without 
touching  the  lips,  and  they  did  not  miss  their  mouths 
a  single  time;  at  first  it  was  hard  for  us  to  keep 
from  smiling.  When  the  meal  was  finished,  a  por- 
tion of  scripture  was  read  in  Arabic,  while  we  fol- 
lowed the  reading  in  an  English  Bible.  Afterwards 
I  gave  the  girls  a  talk  on  my  travels,  and  at  their 
earnest  request,  some  adventures  of  the  T^ndergroimd 


OF    ADDISON    COFFIN.  321 

Railroad,  of  which  they  had  heard  from  the  boys. 
We  next  listened  to  the  reading-  in  English  of  one 
of  the  advanced  cdasses;  though  most  of  them  spoke 
every  word  in  plain  English,  there  was  a  peculiar 
Syrian,  yet  sweet  intonation,  that  was  truly  charm- 
ing. As  I  walked  back  to  the  hotel,  I  was  impressed 
with  the  conviction  that  the  Lord  does  all  things 
well.  The  Syrians  are  made  to  live  in  Syria,  not  in 
England  or  America;  they  can  be  made  good  Syrians, 
and  nothing  else.  As  well  attempt  to  make  Syrians 
out  of  Carolinians  or  Hoosiers* 

To  the  northward  of  the  city  several  miles,  and 
down  the  mountain  from  Brummana,  is  a  celebrated 
place,  now  becoming  world-wide  in  its  importance, 
the  ''Gates  of  the  Kings,"  where  the  mountain  comes 
down  in  an  abrupt  cliff  to  the  water.  Across  the 
outer  end  of  the  bridge  a  pass  has  been  cut  and 
worn,  by  long  use,  nearly  one  hundred  feet  wide, 
with  tolerably  steep  grade.  TTirough  this  pass  came 
and  went  all  the  conquerors  in  the  olden  time,  and 
at  one  place  many  of  them  engraved  their  images,  with 
an  account  of  the  expeditions,  victories  and  conquests. 
Some  have  become  almost  illegible,  whilst  others  are" 
well  preserved.  The  records  go  l)ack  to  early  Egyp- 
tian, Babylonian,  Persian,  Greek  and  Roman  per- 
iods; among  them  is  that  of  Sennacherib.  There  are 
two  that  bear  the  marks  of  prehistoric  time,  not  less 


322  LIFE    AND    TRAVELS 

tlian   five   thousand  years  ago,   and   proljably    much 
older. 

This  ancient  pass  is  not  used  now;  a  French  com- 
pany has  blasted  a  wide  road  in  the  solid  rock,  at 
the  foot  of  the  cliff  near  the  water  line,  which  makes 
a  nice  drive  from  the  city,  but  in  going  we  walked 
down  the  steep  side  of  the  mountain  to  the  pike,  and 
there  took  a  carnage.  In  making  the  descent  we 
passed  through  a  Maronite  village,  seemingly  hang- 
ing to  the  side  of  the  cliff',  and  the  people  were  cur- 
ious to  see  the  two  old  men  who  traveled  unarmed 
from  the  wonderful  land  of  America.  Our  return 
drive  brought  us  to  a  point  on  the  bay  due  west  of 
the  mission,  where  a  French  company  have  a  five 
million  dollar  contract  to  build  an  immense  break- 
water to  protect  the  harbor  of  Beyroot.  The  com- 
pany ran  a  railroad  five  miles  up  a  ravine,  where 
the  rock  formation  stands  nearly  vertical;  here  great 
masses  are  blasted  and  fall  to  the  floor  of  the  ravine 
and  break  to  pieces,  so  the  gTeat  derrick  can  swing 
them  into  the  cars. 

After  a  time  the  engineers  discovered  a  break 
or  crevice  on  top  of  the  hill,  from  four  to  five  hun- 
dred feet  above  the  floor,  and  conceived  the  idea  of 
making  a  blast  that  would  shake  the  whole  country. 
They  ac^^ordingly  worked  to  that  end,  and  gaA-e  out 
word  far  and  wide  among  the  villages  that  on  the 


OF    ADDISON    COFFIN.  323 

afternoon  of  a  given  date  the  explosion  wonld  be 
made.  By  noon  of  that  day  the  opposite  hill  across 
the  ravine  was  covered  with  thousands  of  natives 
anxious  to  see  the  wonderful  event.  Several  thous- 
and of  the  spectators  were  on  a  level  with  the  mass 
to  he  exploded,  and  from  four  to  six  hundred  feet 
away.  AVhen  the  hour  came  the  signal  was  given 
by  a  Ions:,  shrill  whistle  of  a  locomotive  in  the  valley. 
In  an  instant  an  explosion  louder  than  thunder  shook 
the  hills  and  mountains  for  miles  around,  and  the 
whole  side  of  the  hill  Avas  hurled  into  the  air  and 
fell  two  hundred  feet  to  the  floor  with  a  deafening 
crash  that  was  more  fearful  and_  heard  further 
than  the  explosion.  It  was  successful  almost  be- 
yond the  expectation  of  the  engineers,  and  second  to 
none  ever  made,  excepting  the  one  at  El  Paso,  Texas. 
The  effect  upon  the  natives  cannot  be  described;  they 
stood  still  as  death,  seemingly  without  breathing,  for 
nearly  half  an  hour;  then  a  tall  chief  shouted  at  the 
top  of  his  voice,  waving  his  turban,  ^^Great  is  Allah!" 
^^Great  is  Allah!"  Then  the  vast  multitude  seemed 
moved  as  if  by  a  whirlwind,  and  for  many  hours  they 
shouted  like  men  possessed,  waved  their  hands  in  wild 
gesticulations,  danced  and  swayed  in  the  intense  ex- 
<Mtement,  and  only  ceased  when  overcome  by  ex- 
haiKstion;  then  they  began  to  slowly  disperse,  and 
at  sundown  all  were  gone.     English  residents  said  this 


324  LIFE    AND    TRAVELS 

event,  with  the  impression  made,  even  though  it  were 
never  written,  would  go  down  in  tradition  at  least 
iive  hundred  years.  Every  native  was  impressed  with 
what  a  wonderful  people  the  Franks  (French)  were, 
iind  French  influence  was  greatly  extended. 

During  our  stop  we  reviewed  our  journey,  and 
found  we  had  unconsciously  learned  much  about 
•eastern  and  foreign  travel,  how  to  ada])t  ourselves 
to  change  of  climate,  latitude  and  elevation.  My 
health  had  steadily  improved  in  spite  of  constant 
travel,  and  I  can  say  that  invalids  need  not  hesitate 
about  traveling  in  the  Eastern  country,  if  they  will 
use  a  little  practical  judgment  about  eating  and  dress- 
ing. We  still  wore  our  winter  clothes  and  were 
comfortable;  at  all  times  when  making  extra  effort, 
as  in  climbing  hill  and  mountain,  taking  long  walks, 
w^e  pulled  off  our  coats,  even  though  the  weather  or 
elevation  was  cool.  We  did  not  cumber  ourselves 
with  much  luggage,  took  nothing  but  a  grip  sack  that 
we  could  carry  in  our  hands  any^vhere  and  any  time; 
this  made  us  independent  of  the  vexations,  extortions 
and  deceptions  of  porters,  dragomen,  donkey  drivers 
and  cabmen.  The  eastern  people  seem  to  be  a  unit 
in  defrauding  ignorant  foreigners,  especially  those 
who  are  purse-proud  and  out  on  gi-and  parade. 

In  leaving  the  mission  we  felt  as  though  we  could 
not  bestow  too  much  praise  on  all  those  in  charge 


OF    ADDISON    COFFIN.  325 

of  the  schools  and  the  entire  e-hureh  membership. 
They  did  all  they  could  to  make  our  stay  pleasant, 
and  in  addition  very  kindly  gave  much  valuable  in- 
formation concerning  eastern  life,  the  history  and 
traditions  of  the  Mt.  Lebanon  region,  the  decipher- 
ing of  ancient  inscriptions,  and  other  kindred  sub- 
jects. We  had  learned  how  thousands  of  moun- 
taineers live  in  Syria,  and  the  amount  of  labor  it 
has  taken  through  all  the  centuries  to  terrace  and 
build  the  walls  that  are  seen  everywhere.  We  could 
better  understand  the  predictions  concerning  the 
future  of  all  that  region,  for  in  our  daily  walks  and 
talks  we  were  alive  to  all  the  new  and  interesting 
surroundings,  for  we  were  moving  amid  the  scenes 
of  the  oldest  inhabited  land  since  the  flood. 

On  the  morning  of  April  5th  we  bade  adieu  to 
our  kind  friends,  especially  to  Theophilus  Waldmeier 
and  his  excellent  wife,  and  the  general  superinten- 
dents, who  had  been  very  kind  in  giving  us  infor- 
mation. We  took  a  carriage  and  drove  down  to  Bey- 
root,  where  we  were  to  meet  four  Englishmen  and 
six  Amiericans.  We  had  parted  in  Jerusalem;  some 
went  through  by  donkeys  to  Damascus,  others  up 
the  coast  by  Tyre  and  Sidon,  all  to  meet  at  the  hotel 
in  Beyroot  the  evening  of  April  5th  to  take  the 
steamer  the  next  day.  At  sundown  all  were  in  with 
two  additions,  Scotchmen.     We  sat  up  late  rehears- 

21 


326  LIFE    AND    TRAVELS 

ing  adventures,  comparing  notes,  gmng  results  of 
observations  and  impressions,  together  with  the  ex- 
pense of  the  trips.  It  had  cost  several  of  them  fifty 
dollars  each,  none  less  than  thirty,  while  we  had 
spent  but  twelve  dollars  and  a  half  apiece,  though  we 
had  traveled  the  greatest  distance. 

On  the  morning  of  April  (5th,  ISO 2,  we  boarded 
a  Russian  coasting  steamer  bound  for  Athens,  (xreece, 
though  expecting  to  be  coasting  a  week  among  the 
islands.  When  we  engaged  oiu-  passage,  some  weeks 
before,  we  thought  the  steamer  sailed  from  port  to 
port,  but  when  we  learned  that  we  were  going  on 
a  coaster  we  were  rather  pleased  than  offended.  Our 
passage  was  paid  for  the  voyage,  the  accommodations 
were  good  and  most  of  the  passengei-s  were  tourists,  so 
ail  settled  down  for  a  pleasant  time.  The  weather  was 
very  fine,  so  we  could  be  on  deck  all  the  time,  besides 
many  of  the  party  were  good  historians  and  the  voyage 
was  through  the  most  historic  portion  of  the  world. 

From  Beyroot  we  sailed  north  forty  miles  to 
Tripoli,  and  stopped  one  day  and  night  while  tak- 
ing on  20,000  boxes  of  oranges.  It  was  a  very  in- 
teresting day  to  the  tourists;  it  gave  another  oppor- 
tunity to  study  the  Syrian  character.  The  fruit  was 
brought  out  on  small  sail  boats,  manned  by  four  to 
six  men;  each  carried  two  hundred  boxes;  sometimes 
there  were  twenty   boats  waiting  their  turn   to  un- 


OF    ADDISON    COFFIN.  327 

load.  In  watching  the  maneuver  of  the  boat  crews, 
their  undignihed,  selfish  character  could  be  seen; 
every  one  was  shouting  and  giving  orders,  bent  on 
getting  the  advantage  of  the  others,  resulting  in  a 
constant  pushing  and  bumping  among  the  boats,  and 
to  vary  the  scene  a  few  lusty  fisticuffs  would  be 
exchanged.  The  Arabs  and  Syrians  can  make  more 
fuss  and  noise  over  small  things  than  any  other  race; 
they  have  more  respect  for  the  law  of  might  than 
that  of  right.  They  have  antagonized  the  rest  of 
mankind  so  long  that  their  very  nature  has  become 
vindictive  and  vicious.  During  the  day  there 
was  one  amusing  incident:  a  negTO  commanded 
one  boat  and  seemed  to  be  an  acknowledged  leader 
among  them;  he  was  very  noisy  and  blustering,  but 
by  some  unlucky  turn  fell  headlong  into  the  water; 
his  huge  form  made  a  small  whirlpool  as  he  went 
under,  and  when  he  came  up  sputtering  and  blow- 
ing he  called  lustily  for  help.  He  was  soon 
drawn  in,  amidst  shouts  of  laughter;  he  was  thor- 
oughly demoralized,  his  flowing  Turkish  garment  was 
slapping  around  his  limbs,  and  he  looked  as  though 
he  had  received  a  good  tonins:  down  and  was  less 
demonstrative  during  the  remainder  of  the   day. 

From  Tripoli  we  sailed  to  the  island  of  Cyprus, 
making  a  short  trip,  then  sailed  along  the  shore,  much 
of  the  time  so  near  land  that  we  could  see  the  fields. 


328  LIFE    AND    TRAVELS 

orchards  and  vineyards,  with  white  cottages  and  small 
villages  on  the  hillsides  and  in  the  narrow  valleys 
nmning  inland.  Everything,  as  in  Egypt,  indicated 
that  life  and  property  were  more  secure  under  Eng- 
lish than  Turkish  rule.  The  next  island  of  note 
was  Rhcxles,  which  was  once  noted  in  history  and 
a  Christian  stronghold  against  the  conquering  Turk, 
and  it  has  sustained  many  sieges  and  assaults.  It 
is  now  almost  barren,  and  with  but  few  inhabitants. 
The  glass  revealed  the  ruins  of  many  strong  walls 
and  broken  towers,  and  the  hills  were  bare  of  trees 
and  vegetation;  it  is  one  of  the  greatest  ruins  of  the 
middle  ages.  AVe  passed  close  under  the  west  shore 
of  Patmos,  and  failed  to  see  a  li^dng  thing;  all  seemed 
barren,  naked  rocks  coming  down  to  the  water's  edge 
in  ragged,  irregular  cliffs;  but  for  its  association  with 
John's  revelation,  it  would  be  devoid  of  interest. 
Many  times  we  passed  through  narrow  channels  be- 
tween small  islands,  and  could  see  the  people  walking 
-about,  the  cows  and  goats  grazing  on  the  hills;  in 
a  few  instances  we  saw  fniit  on  the  trees.  At  one 
time  I  counted  nine  islands  in  sight;  islands  or  the 
main  land  were  always  in  view  during  the  daytime. 
Erom  the  ship's  log-book  I  drew  our  winding  path, 
:and  it  was  a  marvel  of  intricacy  and  showed  the  per- 
fect knowledge  of  the  pilot. 

We  ran  down  the  long  bay  to  Smyrna,  where  we 


OF    ADDISON    COFFIN.  329 

stopped  a  day  and  part  of  the  night.  Most  of  the^ 
party  landed  and  made  a  sh«n-t  run  of  forty  miles 
by  rail  to  the  ruins  of  Ephesus,  bnt  it  was  a  cool, 
rainy  day,  and  the  trip  was  not  very  satisfactory. 
Ephesns,  like  Jericho,  is  almost  all  gone;  it  is  diffi- 
cult to  trace  the  old  wall  and  to  locate  the  gTeat 
temple  of  Diana.  Five  miles  inland  from  the  present 
landing  are  solid,  massive  walls,  showing  -  where  the 
harbor  was  before  the  great  earthquake  changed  the 
coast  line  for  many  miles.  Smyrna  is  a  beautiftil 
city  of  over  200,000  inhabitants,  built  on  the  side 
of  a  hill  sloping  far  back  from  the  bay.  It  has  been 
destroyed  and  rebuilt  so  often  that  there  are  few 
remains  of  its  old  edifices;  even  the  last  portion  of 
the  old  wall  was  being  taken  down  to  give  building 
room.  It  is  European  in  look  and  character,  being 
rather  Italian  in  outline.  ^N'early  half  the  people 
are  Europeans,  and  the  business  seems  to  be  largely 
in  their  hands;  here  we  saw  a  few  drays  and  hacks 
in  lively  competition  with  the  camel,  donkey  and 
porter.  Upon  continuing  our  cruise  back  to  open 
water,  the  cruise  was  continued  through  many  narrow 
channels  and  beautiful  bays.  At  all  the  stops  the 
Greek  began  to  predominate  among  the  people,  and 
European  dress  prevailed,  with  a  small  percentage  of 
Albanian  costume  (a  man  in  petticoats). 

In  seven  days  we  reached  Athens,  and  no  week 


330  LIFE    AND    TRAVELS 

of  travel  had  been  so  full  of  interest,  nor  had  any 
land  or  water  called  up  busier  memories  of  past  thous- 
ands of  yeare.  AVe  passed  many  battlefields  and 
points  where  naval  engagements  had  occurred  where 
the  fate  of  nations  and  the  world  had  been  decided. 
Many  of  the  scenes  from  the  steamer's  deck  were 
truly  inspii-ing;  we  could  see  islands  covered  with 
ruins,  great  sea-walled  harbors,  without  even  a  fish- 
ing boat  to  relieve  the  desolate  solitude.  The  clear, 
blue  sky,  the  wami  spring  weather,  the  deep  blue 
of  the  water,  all  united  in  intensifying  the  contrasts, 
and  in  clothing  things  with  light,  life  and  beauty. 

We  landed  at  Piraeus,  the  port  of  Athens,  in 
the  afternoon,  and  took  a  carriage  in  preference  to 
rail,  driving,  over  historical  ground,  among  green 
fields  and  orchards,  seven  miles  to  the  city,  which 
was  almost  as  interesting  as  Jerusalem,  and  had  nearly 
as  much  of  the  world's  history  associated  with  it.  We 
started  at  once  to  walk  through  the  beautiful,  modern 
Athens;  we  strolled  about  until  night  through  the 
broad,  clean  streets,  into  the  public  halls,  over  their 
marble  floors,  among  the  beautiful  mansions,  and 
stopped  by  the  way  to  look  into  the  faces  of  the  people, 
so  as  to  fix  the  national  type  in  the  memor\\  Even 
when  twilight  came  it  gave  an  additional  interest — 
that  peculiar  inspiration  that  ]\Irs.  Hemans,  Byron, 
and  others  seem  to  have  caught  while  moving  amid 


OF   ADDISON    COFFIN.  331 

the  same  scenes.  AVhen  we  entered  the  dining 
room  at  the  hotel  we  were  astonished  and  de- 
lighted to  see  over  the  door  in  large  letters: 
"No  smoking  allowed  in  the  dining  room." 
It  was  the  one  hotel  on  all  the  continent  of 
Eurj)oe  that  we  saw  where  there  was  not  more 
or  less  smoking,  not  only  in  the  dining  room,  but  at 
the  fashionable  'Table  d'  bote/'  "where  wine,  wit 
and  wisdom  has  free  course."  AVe  visited  many  of 
the  most  celebrated  hotels  in  eyerj  capitol  of  Eu- 
rope, and  we  found  smoking  in  every  dining  room, 
and  wine  and  strong  drink  on  every  table,  hence  our 
surprise  to  find  this  prohibition  in  little  Greece. 

Next  morning  at  an  early  hour  we  were  stand- 
ing amid  the  splendid  ruins  of  the  Acropolis.  The 
first  emotions  and  impressions  were  similar  to  those 
at  Baalbec — they  were  too  deep  for  words,  overwhelm- 
ing and  almost  oppressive  in  intensity — for  on  that 
spot  I  had  realized  the  attainment  of  one  of  the 
fondest,  brightest  dreams  of  early  life.  I  had  seen 
Baalbec  in  its  fallen  grandeur,  and  now  saw  the 
second  wonder  of  the  world  in  the  grandeur  and 
beauty  of  its  fall.  As.  I  walked  among  and  over 
the  hidden  pillars  and  arches  and  looked  up  to  the 
broken  walls,  a  new  light  came  to  my  mind  which 
gave  me  a  higher,  clearer  understanding  of  why  the 
Lca-d  chose  the  Greeks  to  be  third  great  empire  to 


332  LIFE    AND    TRAVELS 

prepare  the  world  for  the  fifth  and  last.  A  people 
who  could  unite  so  much  of  art,  exquisite  beauty, 
impressive  gTandeur  in  one  temple,  were  a  people 
who  would  stamp  the  spirit  of  their  guests  upon  the 
world  in  characters  that  would  not  die.  To  one  ac- 
quainted with  the  events  of  history,  there  are  few 
places  more  interesting  than  Athens  and  Greece,  for 
the-  fate  of  civilization,  humanity  and  refinement 
seemed  centered  there,  and  radiated  outward  through 
all  the  lands  included  in  prophecy,  and  into  all  the 
fields  of  science  and  discovery. 

To  describe  the  ruined  temple  on  the  Acropolis 
would  be  beyond  my  ability,  for  it  is  different  from 
anything  seen  elsewhere,  so  there  is  no  standard  of 
comparison.  As  we  now  saw^  it  we  were  almost  glad 
that  it  was  a  ruin,  for  as  such  its  beauty  cannot 
change — the  marble  is  imperishable.  We  can  easily 
picture  in  our  minds  how  it  looked  in  the  glory  of 
its  perfection,  but  when  thus  perfect  its  beauty  could 
and  did  fail  and  fall,  but  in  its  fallen  grandeur  it 
will  be  there  for  all  time.  From  any  point  of  the 
ruin  the  view  is  charming  and  grand,  and  from  its 
loftiest  dome,  when  Athens  was  in  her  prime,  it  must 
have  been  tenfold  more  inspiring.  We  stood  in  front 
of  the  temple  ruin  and  looked  down  a  hundred  feet, 
and  a  few  hundred  feet  to  the  right  saw  Mars  Hill, 
a  place  second  in  interest  to  Calvary.      Upon  leaving 


OF    ADDISON    COFFIN.  3B3 

the  Acropolis,  we  ascended  the  worn  stolie  steps  to 
the  top  of  Mars  Hill,  now  a  naked  rock  not  an  acre 
in  extent,  but  it  shows  that  a  building  was  once  fas- 
tened on  it  by  iron  bolts  to  the  rocks.  AVhile  stand- 
ing there  full  of  thronging  memories,  the  same  voices 
that  sounded  in  my  ear  at  Jerusalem  spoke  again: 
-What  might  have  been."  When  Paul  stood  on  that 
rock  1,800  years  ago,  Athens  was  the  scientific  cen- 
ter of  the  known  world;  the  phibsophers  of  all  lands 
came  there  to  learn  wisdom.  There  were  in  that  day 
30,000  shrines  in  and  around  the  great  city  where 
religious  offerings  were  given  to  the  multitude  of 
gods.  There  was  one  shrine  to  the  living  God,  to 
them  ''Unknown."  When  Paul  preached  jto  the 
assembled  philosophers  the  ''Unknown  God,"  it  was 
to  the  wise  ''Greeks'  foolishness."  It  was  while  I  was 
calling  this  to  mind  and  asking  the  questions,  "Where 
BOW  are  the  30,000  shrine>i,  where  all  the  wis- 
dom of  the  philosophers,  where  now^  is  Athens,  where 
is  Paul  and  his  God?"  that  the  voice  came;  "Had 
Jerusalem  received  Christ,  what  would  she  have  been 
to-day?  Had  Athens  accepted  the  gospel  preached 
by  Paul,  what  might  Athens  have  been  to-day?  In- 
stead, what  are  they  to-day?  Athens,  without  a 
promise;  Jerusalem,  still  trodden  down.  What  of 
the  wise  Greeks  who  laughed  at  Paul?" 

From  Athens  we  sailed  in  a  good  steamer  for 


334  LIFE    AND    TRAVELS 

Constantinople,  another  coaster,  which  took  us  again 
amongst  beautiful  islands,  around  historic  headlands, 
past  low,  green  shores,  and  over  waters  made  mem- 
orable bv  naval  conflicts,  passed  the  head  of  the  cele- 
brated battle  scene  of  Salamis,  and  one  could  imagine 
the  fearful  conflict  raging  in  the  narrow  strait  be- 
tween the  great  fleets  of  Greece  and  Persia,  with 
Xerxes,  the  haughty  king,  watching  the  destruction 
of  his  fleet,  with  no  power  to  succor  or  to  save.  We 
passed  the  Dardanelles  in  the  afternoon  of  a  bright, 
still  day,  and  the  interest  became  intensified  every 
mile,  for  each  foot  of  land  and  water  had  been  the 
scene  of  thrilling  events.  The  guide  books  were  in 
demand  among  the  tourists;  all  were  aglow  in  calling 
memories  of  the  past;  quotations  from  history,  poetry, 
.romance  and  tradition  were  uttered  with  shouts  of 
delight.  Here  the  hurrying  scenes  of  centuries 
seemed  crowded  into  so  small  a  space  that  the  mind 
could  comprehend  and  imagination  have  free  play. 

On  that  spot  the  Persian  thousands  landed,  and 
on  the  plain  out  yonder  "The  glad  earth  drank  their 
blood."  Just  over  there  the  ''Grecian  phalanx  hewed 
its  dreadful,  way  'mid  that  wild  carnival  of  death. '^ 
There  was  where  the  Roman  legions  first  set  foot  in 
Asia.  Over  beyond  that  blue  hill  ''Cross  and  cres- 
cent both  went  down  in  the  dark  vintage  of  the 
grave."     The  enthusiasm  went  on  as  successive  points 


OF    ADDISON    COFFIN.  385 

were  passed,  and  wlien  we  came  to  the  place  of  the 
wonderfiil  pontoon  bridge  the  interest  was  intense 
among  the  soldier  element  of  the  party.  About 
night  we  entered  the  sea  of  Marmora,  and  afterward 
all  were  ready  for  rest,  at  least  rest  of  mind,  for  few 
places  are  more  exciting  than  this  crossing  place  of  the 
world. 

It  was  early  morning  when  we  came  into  the  Bos- 
phorns,  and  were  in  sight  of  the  Golden  Horn.  Every- 
thing seemed  to  nnite  in  giving  a  peculiar  glow  of 
beauty  and  splendor  to  the  marvelous  scene.  Towers, 
minarets,  domes,  spires  and  gilded  palaces  glittered  in 
the  early  sunlight;  the  wide  expanse  of  the  Pera 
rising  from  the  water's  edge  was  all  aglow  with  light 
Stamboul,  with  its  lofty  minarets,  partly  in  the  shade, 
Avas  beautifully  outlined  on  the  blue  sky  beyond  the 
hills.  Scutari  seemed  like  a  quiet  resting  place 
nestled  among  gardens  and  groves.  The  low  rumble 
of  the  great  city  came  floating  out  on  the  morn- 
ing air  as  the  soft,  light  mist  from  the  water  floated 
away,  making  a  picture  not  to  be  forgotten,  for  a 
finer  one  is  rarely  seen  in  any  clime:  but  alas!  few 
are  more  delusive. 

With  eager  feet  and  great  enthusiasm,  I  stepped 
into  the  boat  to  make  the  landing,  and  sprang  ashore 
more  like  a  boy  than  an  old  man,  anxious  to  enter 
what  promised  to  be  a  paradise  of  loveliness.     But 


336  LIFE    AND    TRAVELS 

alas!  alas!  when  I  looked  around  into  the  faces  of 
the  rushing  throng  of  sti'ange  beings  that  sur- 
rounded me  my  enthusiasm  was  gone,  all  my 
fond  anticipations  were  blasted.  It  seemed  as 
though  the  concentrated  vindictiveness  of  all  the 
earth  had  been  poured  out  and  infused  into 
the  population  of  Constantinople,  that  the  essence 
of  all  earth's  wickedness  had  united  there.  I  shud- 
der to  think  and  realize  that  volcano  of  malice  and 
hate  that  was  there,  ready  to  explode  at  any  time 
without  a  moment^s  notice.  Up  to  that  day  I  had  not 
felt  any  sense  of  insecurity,  fear  or  danger,  but  then 
and  there  I  did;  a  feeling  of  unrest  took  possession 
of  me.  The  result  was  the  stay  was  shortened  to 
two  days  instead  of  a  week. 

During  that  time,  however,  we  saw  much  of 
the  city  and  environs;  saw  the  people  and  their  habits; 
in  fact,  we  made  good  use  of  the  opportunity  to  take 
the  last  lesson  of  eastern  life.  AVe  climbed  the  old 
Venetian  tower,  built  five  hundred  years  ago,  to  get 
k  mind  picture  of  the  vast  scene,  which  was  on  a 
scale  of  magiiificence  that  will  never  be  forgotten. 
The  whole  city  was  mapped  out  at  our  feet,  while 
the  blue  hills  extended  beyond  the  reach  of  the  eye 
on  the  European  side.  Over  in  Asia,  low  hills  and 
far  off  mountains  formed  a  charming  background, 
while  the  bright  waters  of  the  Straight  and  Horn  were 


OF    ADD] SON    COFFIN.  887 

sparkling  in  the  sun.  1  sliuukl  be  glad  if  the  im- 
pression of  tlie  citv  could  pass  into  oblivion,  and  the 
one  from  the  tower  alone  remembered;  yet  the  stop  in 
Constantinople  paid  richly,  and  to  one  with  stronger 
nerves  a  longer  stay  would  be  enjoyed. 

The  i^turn  trip  to  London  lay  through  Roumalia, 
Bulgaria,  Servia,  Hungary,  Austria,  G-ermany,  Belgium 
and  northern  France,  across  Europe  from  east  to  west. 
As  we  wished  to  see  the  country  in  passing,  we  stopped 
each  night,  and  always  took  the  slow  local  trains,  in 
some  cases  going  at  the  speed  of  only  twelve  miles  an 
hour.  Much  of  the  time  we  could  see  the  people  at 
work  in  the  fields  and  gardens,  and  had  a  good  view  of 
the  kind  of  implements  they  used,  the  harness  of  the 
horses,  carts,  cattle,  and  little  farms  marked  by  white 
stones  at  the  corners.  We  could  look  into  the  back 
yard  of  many  homes,  and  w^atch  every  day  domestic 
life  untrammeled.  In  this  way  we  saw  and  leanied 
much  from  the  practical  side.  Much  skill  is  evinced 
in  economizing  time,  labor  and  space  in  the  densely 
populated  districts.  In  some  places'  every  wall,  fence, 
sides  of  buildings  and  tops  of  out  houses  were  covered 
with  vines,  and  stakes  were  driven  in  the  ground  on 
which  were  boxe^  with  vegetables  gTO^\dng  in  them. 
It  seemed  literally  cultivating  the  aii*. 

We  stopped  one  day  or  more  at  several  noted 
places,  Belgrade,  Buda-Pesth,  Vienna,  "Wells,  I^urera- 


4^8  LIFE    AND    TRAVELS 

berg,  Prankfort  on  the  Main,  Bohn,  Brussels,  etc.,  etc. 
This  gave  desired  opportunity  to  study  humanity  at 
home,  in  the  great  centers  of  business  where  national 
characteristics  were  highly  developed.  Oft  times  I 
stood  for  hours  without  weariness  and  watched  the  tide 
of  life  go  by;  looked  into  the  strange  faces,  and  read 
their  hopes,  fears,  aspirations  and  ambitions  when  they 
did  not  have  their  masks  on,  for  nine  people  out  of  ten 
do  not  wear  the  mask  of  restraint  when  rushing  to  and 
from  business;  therefore,  that  is  the  time  to  read  their 
minds  and  the  secrets  of  the  heart.  Xo  people  in 
Europe  are  a  greater  wonder  than  the  Hunns.  They 
are  a  distinct  race,  strangei-s  in  a  strange  land,  holding 
their  possessions  by  right  of  conquest,  without  know- 
ing  from  whence  they  sprang  in  the  distant  past,  but 
they  have  come  to  Hungary  to  stay. 

The  whole  trip  from  Constantinople  to  London 
was  a  continued  surprise.  I  was  not  prepared  to  see 
so  much  beautiful  country,  or  so  many  places  that 
would  remind  me  of  home  and  native  land.  The 
greatest  astonishment  was  the  broad  plains  of  Hungary 
and  eastern  Austria;  they  were  very  much  like  the 
finest  parts  of  Illinois,  Iowa  and  IN'ebraska,  equally  as 
fertile  and  under  far  better  cultivation.  Then  in 
western  Austria  and  in  Germany  there  were  rural 
scenes  that  called  to  mind  eastern  Pennsylvania,  cen 
tral  Ohio  and  Indiana,  with  double  the  population. 


OF    ADDISON    COFFIN.  839 

The  vallev  of  the  Danube  was  luneh  like  some  of  our 
beautiful  American  valleys.  It  is  underestimated  by 
most  writers  because  less  known;  it  is  very  fertile. 
While  the  Rhine  and  its  valley  is  picturesque  when 
measured  by  European  rivers,  yet  it  is  very  much  over- 
estimated. The  Columbia  river  and  its  tributaries 
have  more  gTandeur  and  real  he^iuty  than  all  the  rivers 
of  Euro])e.  The  Hudson  is  as  tine  as  the  Rhine;  the 
Kanawha  has  far  mare  oTand  mountain  scenery.  Th^ 
valley  of  the  Yellowstone  is  much  more  interesting, 
especially  to  the  scientist,  than  any  European  region. 
"We  must  not  attempt  to  measure  Europe  by  American 
yard  sticks,  or  we  shall  do  Europe  injustice.  The  Lord 
made  Europe  a  small  place,  and  it  is  not  its  fault  that 
it  is  so.  Pile  all  the  mountains  in  Europe  in  one  heap 
and  the  Sierra  Nevada  and  Coast  range  would  double 
the  size;  so  it  would  be  with  many  comparisons. 
Thoughtless  Americans  make  themselves  offensive  and 
contemptible  by  constantly  refering  to  the  size  of  our 
country,  ^vhile  shrewd  Europeans  measure  them  by  the 
size  of  their  folly  and  pass  them  by.  That  class  of 
Americans  are  like  some  of  the  English  who  ai-e  al- 
ways talking  about  old  John  Bull,  London,  the  Queen, 
etc.,  etc. 

It  would  take  much  time  to  des(n*ibe  the  many 
local  points  on  our  way,.  Belgrade  was  interesting  on 
account  of  its  past  in  the  fearful  conflicts  that  took 


340  LIFE    AiND    TRAVELS 

place  in  and  aruund  it,  during  the  long  war  with  the 
Turk  when  he  Hvat  entered  Europe.  Buda-Pesth  is  a 
beautiful  city,  the  capital  of  the  wonderful  Hunn. 
Vienna  is  one  of  the  gTeatest  cities  of  the  world.  It 
has  many  points  common  to  other  cities,  but  there  are 
portions  that  date  back  more  than  a  thousand  years; 
when  every  house  was  built  with  thick  walls  for  de- 
fense, and  the  streets  so  narrow  that  heavy  stones  could 
be  hurled  from  the  windows  and  house  tops  upon  an 
enemy  below.  As  life  and  property  became  more  se- 
<^ure,  the  houses  were  less  massive,  and  when  gun- 
powder and  hrearms  were  invented  the  construction  of 
the  houses  assumed  the  modern  form.  This  gradual 
progress  is  peculiar  to  the  older  portion  of  Vienna^ 
while  the  city,  as  seen  today,  is  one  that  has  all  the 
interesting  things  of  art,  inventions  and  science  that 
we  see  in  the  great  cities  of  the  world.  We  stopped  at 
Wells  to  see  a  small  town  that  has  changed  but  little  in 
five  hundred  years.  Many  of  the  houses  are  one  story 
at  the  side,  and  three  stories  at  the  end,  with  a  gable 
to  the  street.  The  peo^ple  move  about  as  though  they 
were  dreaming  and  belonged  to  the  past. 

Nuremberg  is  a  remarkable  place  and  very  old. 
Its  citadel  dates  back  to  the  fifth  century,  and  many 
buildings  are  on  foundations  laid  in  the  tw^elfth  cen- 
tury; most  of  the  old  w^all  is  still  standing  in  a  fair 
stateof  preservation.    We  visited  amarket  in  an  oblong 


OF    ADDISON    COFFIN.  341 

irregular  open  space,  which  was  kept  by  women.  The 
stalls  and  tables  seemed  to  be  permanent  fixtures  and 
the  market  for  all  time.  Many  of  the  women  had  their 
knitting  and  sewing,  or  were  mending  clothes,  making 
baskets;  in  fact,  there  were  various  kinds  of  handicraft 
going  on  while  tending  the  stalls.  The  men  came  and 
went  as  purchasers,  but  there  was  not  a  man  to  be  seen 
as  a  salesman;  most  of  the  women  were  middle  aged, 
or  over,  and  all  seemed  to  be  settled  in  business  for  life. 
It  was  a  general  market  where  all  home  wants  could  be 
supplied. 

Frankfort  on  the  Main  river  is  one  of  the  in- 
teresting places  for  tourists  to  stop.  It  is  especially 
historic,  for  it  goes  back  to  the  days  of  Roman  con- 
quest and  defeat;  but,  as  a  city  of  today,  it  is  best 
known  for  its  zoological  and  botanical  gardens  and 
museum.  Though  not  as  large  as  some,  they  were  as 
fine  as  any  we  bad  seen.  They  had  the  most  perfect 
specimen  of  a  white  polar  bear  that  I  ever  saw,  also  a 
pair  of  ^ew  Zealand  ostriches,  the  only  ones  we  found 
in  all  our  trip.  If  the  tourist  wishes  to  gain  informa- 
tion and  solid  knowledge,  Frankfort  is  the  place  to 
get  it. 

Bonn  has  its  peculiar  features  as  a  city,  but  to  me 
it  had  a  sad  interest.  A  niece  was  buried  there  and  I 
wanted  to  see  her  grave.  The  cemetery  where  she  was 
interred  was  a  new  one,  a  mile  out  of  the  city  among 

22 


B42  LIFE    AND    TRAVELS 

broad  green  fields,  and  was  kept  in  nice  order.  I  did 
not  understand  a  word  of  German,  yet  when  I  wrote 
"Mary  Cofiin"  on  a  card,  tbe  woman  in  charge  gave 
mean  earnest,  kind  look,  and  then  led  me  directly  to  the 
grave.  By  signs  I  told  her  my  relationship  to  the 
buried  one,  and  she  extended  her  hand  in  deep  sym- 
pathy, and  pointed  to  the  grave  as  being  alone ;  mutely 
saying,  '-Alone  among  strangers."  She  was  past 
middle  life,  yet  active  and  strong,  and  had  a  mother 
heart  and  knew  how  to  sympathize  with  others.  When 
I  turned  away  from  the  lowly  tomb,  1  thought  that  I 
too,  might  fall  by  the  wayside  and  possibly  fill  a 
stranger's  grave,  but  I  have  the  picture  of  Mary 
Cofirin's  sepulchre  and  the  green  fields  around  as  dis- 
tinct as  when  standing  there.  One  pleasing  thing  at 
Bonn  is  its  long  shady  avenues  of  grand  spreading 
trees,  that  impart  a  look  of  rest  and  (piietude  that 
leaves  a  pleasant  memory. 

Wlaen  we  entered  Belgium,  there  was  a  marked 
change  in  the  condition  of  things  everywhere.  More 
men  were  in  siglit  than  in  any  other  country.  Out  in 
the  fields,  on  the  highways,  in  the  towns  and  cities 
were  many  young  and  middle  aged  men.  This  gave 
a  new  aspect  to  domestic  life.  This  is  owing  to  the 
miJitary  systenj  not  being  so  rigid  and  merciless  as  in 
otljer  states.  Conseipiently  there  are  more  men,  in 
pic  portion    to    the    population,    who    are    producers. 


OF    ADDISON    COFFIN.  843 

1  litTcfore.  fewer  old  men,  women  and  (diildreii  were 
ont  in  the  iields,  fewer  yonnu-  ^irls  were  compelled  to 
do  menial  labor.  There 'was  a  more  eheerfnl  look  in 
the  faces  of  the  laborers;  few  mothers  were  seen  carry- 
ing small  infants  and  burdens  at  the  same  time.  The 
littlp  farms  and  gardens  were  better  cultivated.  In 
fact,  every  tiling  and  everybody  had  a  bright  look.  In 
the  city  of  I^rnssels  I  was  astonished  to  see  over  shop 
doors  names  familiar  at  home.  There  did  not  seem  to 
be  a  name  in  Brussels  but  that  could  be  found  in  In- 
diana j)olis  and  Cincinnati,  and  it  seemed  like  getting 
back  among  home  folks  to  read  the  many  signs  along 
the  streets. 

From  Brussels  we  made  a  (juick  run  to  London, 
crossing  the  channel  at  Dover.  In  a  few  days  we 
found  our  friends,  Mary  C.  Woody  and  Lorena 
Reynolds,  and  had  a  glad  meeting  with  them. 
They  had  seen  nuich  of  English  life,  and  held 
religious  service  with  the  various  missions  in  London 
and  other  cities.  AVhen  we  gave  in  detail  our  travels, 
k  seemed  almost  past  belief.  AVe  had  accomplished 
far  more  than  the  average  tourist,  and  to  my  com- 
panion, John  Van  Lindley,  it  did  appear  wonderful 
that  we  should  be  able  to  see  and  do  so  much  among 
strangers,  unarmed  and  without  escort. 


CHAPTER   TEN. 


Seeing  London — London  Yearly  Meeting  of  Friends' 
Church. 

We  were  in  the  grand  old  city  once  more,  with 
nianv  new  ideas,  and  a  wider  range  of  thought,  and  in- 
creased respect  for  England's  true  greatness.  We  pro- 
posed to  settle  down  to  regular  work  in  seeing  London 
and  the  live  millions  of  people  inside  its  corporate 
limits;  but  it  would  take  many  months  to  write  up  all 
that  would  be  interesting  to  an  American,  besides  it  is 
an  every  day  occurrence  to  see  letters  written  V)y  en- 
thusiastic tourists  from  London,  who  know  but  little 
of  their  own  land,  save  their  own  state  and  home  circle. 
To  such,  London  looks  very  different  from  what  it  dofjs 
to  one  who  has  seen  other  lands;  therefore,  their  ac- 
counts are  highly  colored  and  misleading.  We  began 
by  taking  long  rides  on  top  of  the  double-decked  omni- 
buses and  tram  (street)  cars.  Thus  we  were  at  least 
twelve  feet  above  the  pavement,  and  could  look  down 
on  the  great  throngs  of  vehicles  and  thousands  of  pe- 
destrians that  crowd  the  sidewalks.  Sometimes  we 
would  ride  out  on  one  line  three  to  five  miles,  then 
(344) 


OF   ADDISON   COFFIN.  345 

change  to  another  going  at  right  angles,  and  ride  some 
miles  in  that  direction,  then  go  on  foot  a  mile  or  two, 
then  ride  again,  always  circling  so  as  to  be  home  by 
night.  Some  days  we  would  ride  twenty  or  thirty 
miles.  Then  again  we  would  take  the  under  gTound 
and  overhead  railroads,  and  travel  to  all  the  prominent 
places,  scarcely  ever  returning  on  the  same  line  to 
our  starting  point,  Broad  street  station.  We  had 
chosen  this  because  from  there  we  could  radiate  all 
over  the  city  and  converge  from  all  places.  We  ex- 
plored this  vast  city  many  days.  We  went  to  the 
ijritish  museum.  South  Kensington  museum,  St.  Paul, 
Westminster,  Tower  of  London,  Greenwich,  The 
Strand,  Xew  Garden,  Zoological  Garden,  Prince  Al- 
bert's monument,  London  bridge,  the  wonderful 
docks,  meat  market,  fruit  market.  Crystal  palace  and 
at  least  fifty  other  celebrated  places,  institutions,  col- 
lections and  exhibits. 

The  British  and  South  Kensington  museums  are 
the  finest  of  the  kind  to  be  seen  anywhere.  Prepared 
specimens  of  every  animal,  beast,  bird,  reptile,  fish  and 
insect  in  the  world  can  be  seen,  together  with  fossil  re- 
mains from  all  lands.  In  Kew  Garden  we  found  speci- 
mens of  plants,  vegetables,  trees  and  flowers  from 
every  corner  of  the  earth,  either  under  glass,  or  in  the 
open  air.  In  the  Zoological  garden  we  saw  every  liv- 
ing thing  that  can  be  kept  alive  in  the  climate  of 


346  LIFE    AND    TRAVELS 

England,  .  In  the  great  library  may  be  seen  a  collec- 
tion of  books^  rolls,  manuscripts,  teiTa  cotta  tile  and 
tablets  in  eyery  langiiage  liying  or  dead,  among  which 
the  student  may, spend  a  life  and  not  learn  the  half. 

In  Westminster  Al)bey  we  saw  the  resting  place 
af  saint  and  sinner^  the  gifted  and  the  great,  the  base 
and  the  yile,  monsters,  murderers,  tyrants  alongside  of 
martyrs,  philanthropists  and  Christian  statesmen,  with 
all  their  names  written  <m  the  roll  of  fame. 

In  this  way  we  spent  nearly  three  weeks  before 
starting  on  our  second  great  tour,  and  also  awaiting 
the  coming  of  London  Yearly  Meeting  of  Friends' 
Church.  This  annual  assembly  of  Friends,  or  Quak- 
ers, is  looked  upon  as  the  highest  authority  in  the 
church  throughout  the  world,  and  a  report  of  its  de- 
liberations is  receiyed  with  great  interest  by  all-  the 
membership.  Its  regular  session  began  May  18th, 
1892,  at  Deyonshire  House  in  London,  and  no  event 
in  my  life  was  looked  forward  to  with  much  I'lore 
eagerness. 

When  I  first  entered  the  room  where  it  was  coti- 
vened  it  was  with  a  certain  feeling  of  awe  and  rever- 
ence, for  I  had  formed  a  very  high  ideal  of  the  wis- 
dom and  piety  of  that  almost  divinely  inspired  body  of 
Friends.  The  veneration  that  filled  my  young  heart, 
when  I  saw  and  heard  Anna  Braithwaite  preach  at 
^T^Tew  Garden,  X.  C,  in  1828,  had  lived  with  undimin- 


OF   ADDISON    COFFIN.  347 

islied  fresliiies8,  and  that  feeling  had  been  kept  alive 
through  all  the  years,  by  the  frequent  visits  of  English 
Friends  to  America.  When  my  emotions  toned  down, 
and  1  looked  around,  my  ideal  dream  began  to  fade, 
and  a  feeling  of  disappointment  dimmed  my  eyes  with 
tears.  When  the  reaction  passed  and  I  began  slowly 
surveying  my  surroundings  and  drawing  conclusions, 
I  perceived  the  large  room  was  tolerably  well  filled 
with  serious,  solid  thoughtful,  reverent  looking  men 
much  above  the  average  of  those  I  had  been  meeting 
in  traveling  through  the  city  and  country,  but  not 
divinely  grand  and  noble,  as  seen  in  my  ideals  of  early 
life. 

■The  business  was  conducte<l  in  much  the  same 
way  as  in  American  Yearly  Meetings  thirty  years  ago. 
The  delegates  were  called  in  regular  order,  a])sentecs 
were  noted  and  reason  for  their  absence  given.  Cor- 
respondence from  other  Yearly  Meetings  of  the  world 
w^as  read,  and  after  the  reading:  of  each  epistle,  a  com- 
mittee to  reply  to  it  was  appointed,  and  the  committee 
was  instructed  as  to  special  messages,  or  information 
wanted.  When  the  epistle  from  Iowa  Yearly  Meeting- 
was  read  there  was  quite  a  diversity  of  feeling  and 
opinions.  Many  disapproved  of  lowa^s  innovations 
and  departure  from  the  long  standing  usages  of  the 
church.  Some  of  the  speakers  seemed  ready  to  cease 
correspondence  with  that  Yearly  Meeting,  and  the  dis- 


348      '     •  LIFE    AND    TRAVELS 

ciissictn  was  spirited  and  earnest,  but  the  clear,  sound 
reasoning  of  the  more  charitable  and  liberal,  pre- 
vailed, and  the  discussion  closed  mth  good  feeling  and 
harmony.  But  later  on  when  the  request  from  Iowa 
came  for  a  delegation  to  be  sent  from  England  to  es- 
tablish a  new  Yearly  meeting  at  Xewburg  in  Oregon, 
the  controversy  was  revived,  and  another  spirited  dis- 
cussion followed.  Some  of  the  more  conservative  were 
ready  to  refuse  recognition  to  the  new  meeting,  but 
again  the  clear,  cool,  descernment  of  superior  minds 
arose  above  the  narrow  conservatism:  all  were  at 
length  willing  to  yield  to  the  judgment  of  the  mor*^ 
spiritually  minded,  and  harmony  again  prevailed. 

I  had  no  credentials  from  my  home,  as  I  did  not 
start  from  there  on  my  trip,  but  Dr.  Mendenhall  and 
the  faculty  of  Guilford  college,  X.  (\.  had  kindly 
given  me  a  general  pass.  After  the  business  of  the 
meeting  had  gone  on  for  some  time  an  usher  came  to 
me  and  asked  if  I  had  credentials.  I  replied  that  I  had, 
which  seemed  to  satisfy  him  for  the  time,  but  after- 
wards he  said  the  clerk  must  see  them.  This  T  com- 
plied \nth,  but  declined  to  have  them  publiclv  read. 
American  Yearly  Meetings  had  long  since  drifted 
from  this  exclusiveness,  &o  the  event  was  a  surprise, 
though  kindly  meant  and  kindly  done. 

When  the  triennial  reports  from  the  Quarterly 
Meetings  were  read,  the  wide  and  varied  fields  of  labor 


OF    ADDISON    COFFIN.  ♦         849 

in  which  Friends  were  actively  engaged  were  apparent. 
They  seemed  to  be  taking  part  in  all  great  movements 
to  save,  elevate,  convert  and  refine  humanity,  not  only 
at  home,  but  in  all  lands  throughout  the  world.  It 
was  easy  to  discern  the  internal  condition  of  the 
church;  an  antagonism  in  modes  of  work,  but  not  in 
spirit,  or  purpose.  In  the  reports  there  were  com- 
plaints of  negligence  in  attending  religious  meetings, 
remissness  in  minor  duties  and  of  indulging  too 
much  in  worldly  ambition,  and  like  Americans  favor- 
ing departures  and  innovations  from  the  good  old  con- 
servative ways,  to  launch  out  into  the  broad  field  of 
liberalism,  which  to  some  seemed  to  bode  evil  to  the 
church  and  C^hristianity.  During  the  consideration  of 
this  subject  the  real  depth  and  breadth  of  the  won- 
derful spiritual  life  of  the  meeting  \vas  seen  and  heard 
in  its  full  gTandeur  and  beauty.  In  spite  of  narrow- 
minded  conservatism,  zeal  without  knowledge,  stereo- 
typed formality,  the  evidence  of  a  pure,  refined  spirit- 
uality was  manifest,  and  in  the  end  hushed  a  factious 
opposition  into  silence, and  it  seemed  that  a  soft,sweet 
influence  covered  the  assembly  with  a  mantle  of  love. 
One  of  the  speakers  presented  a  grand  thought,  which 
was  that  the  Gospel  of  Christ  contained  truths  that  the 
highest  attainments  of  modern  thought  and  intellect- 
ual insight  could  not  comprehend,  that  we  of  this  gen- 
eration are  yet  seeing  through  a  glass  darkly.     Th<^ 


850  '  LIFE    AND    TRAVELS 

liigiiest  spiritual  life  is  but  the  dawning  of  a  far  gi-and- 
er  enlightenment  yet  to  come.  The  discussion  was 
truly  a  tine  spiritual  feast,  and  gave  evidence  of  a  pure 
li^dng  faith,  which  marked  a  day  of  progress  toward  a 
higher  triumph  in  Quakerism  throughout  the  entire 
church. 

The  forenoon  of  the  20th  was  given  for  meetings 
for  worship  in  Devonshire  House  and  other  places. 
The  manner  in  which  the  meetings  were  held,  carried 
me  back  to  Indiana  and  Western  Yearly  Meetings  30 
years  ago.  They  began  with  a  hush  of  profound 
silence,  that  called  up  the  memories  of  childhood, 
when  the  venerable,  yea,  to  me  almost  divine  form  of 
Xathan  Hunt  sat  at  the  head  of  i^orth  Carolina  Yearly 
Meeting.  There  was  no  singing,  no  introduction  of 
subjects,  no  preliminary  remarks,  no  expectant  look  of 
curiosity,  or  anticipation,  no  reading  a  portion  of  Scrip- 
ture, l)ut  the  ministers  moved  right  out  at  once  with 
their  subjects.  The  style  of  oratory  was  deliberate, 
smooth  and  fluent,  very  impressive  and  sublime.  Thero 
were  no  fiery,  lofty  flights  of  eloquence,  and  impetu- 
ous enthusiasm,  as  seen  in  our  western  country,  no  as- 
sentive  responses,  no  emphatic  aniens,  nor  encouraging 
words  from  the  audience;  all  were  motionless,  pro- 
foundly still,  and  reverentially  attentive.  As  the  min- 
ister deepened  and  widened  in  his  discourse,  it  seemed 
as  though  great  waves  of  thrilling,  but  silent  ecstacy 


OF    ADDISON    COFFIN.  351 

would  sweep  over  the  assembly,  like  the  wind  across  a 
golden  held  of  grain.  Such  meetings  the  younger  gen- 
eration in  our  northwest  have  not  seen,  nor  could  they 
-  rightly  understand  them  if  seen,  for  western  life  has 
drifted  with  the  current  of  events,  and  away  from 
silent  meetings  and  former  usage,  so  far  and  so  rapidly 
that  the  past  will  soon  be  forgotten  and  be  known  no 
more. 

When  the  regular  business  of  the  meeting  was  re- 
sumed the  report  of  the  relief  committee  to  the  famine 
stricken  provinces  of  Russia  was  read  and  the  explana- 
tions, and  account  of  the  terrible  sutfering  was  deeply 
interesting  and  instructive.  The  amount  of  relief  had 
been  large  and  etlected  much  good  in  a  quiet  way.  I 
had  read  accounts  of  relief  associations,  about  which 
nuich  had  been  said,  but  their  work  was  small  when 
compared  with  that  of  Friends,  of  which  the  outside 
world  knew  nothing.  The  reports  from  Friends  in 
Australia  and  New  Zealand  were  full  of  interesting 
facts,  especially  to  iVmericans,  who  are  accustomed  to 
long  distances.  In  explaining  how,  and  where  Friends 
were  situated,  two  meetings  were  as  widely  separated 
as  London  and  New  York,  yet  the  future  of  the  church 
in  that  far-oif  land  was  full  of  hope  and  promise.  It 
was  much  like  our  great  west  35  years  ago,  before  the 
spirit  of  expansion  and  evangelizing  was  infused  into 
Iowa  Yearly  Meeting.      A  far  grander  residt   tlian 


352  LIFE    AND    TRAVELS 

came  to  Iowa  will  come  to  London  Yearly  Meeting, 
wben  she  receives  the  outpouring  of  the  spirit,  and  the 
call  to  go  forth  into  the  field  of  the  world,  now  white 
unto  the  harvest. 

The  amount  of  business  transacted  by  the  meet- 
ing each  day  was  a  surprise  to  strangers.  Friends  have 
taken  a  part  in  all  the  charitable  work  of  the  empire, 
such  as  schools,  homes,  relief  associations,  home  and 
foreign  missions.  They  also  have  a  care  of  trusts, 
gifts,  endowments,  relief  funds,  rents  and  leases,  and 
many  and  varied  other  things  not  known  to  us.  Much 
of  the  business  was  done  through  judicious  committees, 
yvho  give  the  subjects  entrusted  to  them  their  careful 
examination  and  mature  thought;  then  they  embody 
their  judgment  in  their  report,  with  propositions,  or 
suggestions,  as  they  may  deem  necessary;  the  reports 
are  generally  received  and  entered  on  the  minutes 
without  discussion;  in  this  way  the  routine  business  is 
easily  and  rapidly  disposed  of.  The  thorough  business 
training  nearly  all  English  Friends  have  enables  them 
to  manage  the  many  interests  in  harmony  and  dispatch. 

The  meeting  held  in  Devonshire  House  on  the 
Sabbath  was  very  different  from  public  meetings  in 
America.  There  was  nothing  to  distinguish  it  from 
joint  meetings  of  business,  but  the  absence  of  business. 
There  was  but  little  difference  in  numbers,  or  in  any 
other  particular  feature.     The  sermons  and  prayers 


OF    ADDISON    COFFIN.  858 

were  delivered  with  measured  precision,  and  reveren- 
tial decorum.  All  the  zeal  and  tire  seen  in  America 
on  such  occasions  were  lacking;  it  was  not  so  edifying 
as  the  meeting  held  for  the  membership  alone  on  a 
previous  occasion.  The  meetings  did  not  seem  to  pro- 
duce a  single  ripple  in  the  tide  of  life  outside  the  house; 
a  few  passers  by  would  stop  a  moment  to  look,  then 
pa^as  on  with  no  further  thought  of  what  was  going  on 
within.  This  was  in  striking  contrast  to  the  way 
nearly  all  American  meetings  are  looked  upon  by  the 
comunities  where  they  are  located.  Western  Yearly 
Meetings  especially  are  regarded  by  all  the  neighbor- 
hood as  one  of  the  sensational  events  of  each  year;  tens 
of  thousands  of  people  attend  on  Sunday  and  excur- 
sion rates  are  given  by  the  railroads  for  the  meetings. 
To  see  the  w<3rld-honored  London  Meeting  so  little 
heeded  and  seemingly  unknown  was  not  only  a  sur- 
prise, but  a  disappointment. 

The  business  sessions  of  one  day  were  taken  up  in 
reading  and  considering  the  reports  of  the  Home  Mis- 
sionary committee.  They  were  long  and  full  of  in- 
terest ;  the  lengthy  discussions  gave  a  clear  insight  into 
the  varied  opinions,  preferences,  prejudices,  hopas  and 
fears  of  the  membership.  The  subje<^t  was  opened  by 
what  might  be  called  the  opposition,  who  endeavored 
to  show  that  the  usage,  modes  of  procedure,  manner 
of  work  and  teac^hing  of  the  committee  and  its  workers 


35i  LIFE    AND    TRAVELS 

would  leadj  was  leading,  directly  to  a  ''paid  ininistrv 
and  ecclesiastical  bondage."  Many,  probably  more 
than  half  of  the  speakers  of  the  opposition,  repeatedly 
referred  to  Iowa  Yearly  Meeting's  unpardonable  de- 
parture from  Friends'  sacred  principles  and  usages; 
this  seemed  to  be  a  favorite  weapon  to  combat  innova-' 
tions.  To  me  their  ignorance  of  the  real  situation  in 
Iowa  was  painful,  yet  I  could  think  kindly  of  them 
when  calling  to  mind  how  impossible  it  was  for 
Friends  living  in  London  and  England  to  understand 
the  surroundings  of  the  membership  in  the  limits  of 
Iowa  Yearlv  Meeting:  even  should  they  go  there  they 
would  not  comprehend  what  pioneer  life  is,  and  has 
been,  unless  they  resided  there  two  years  or  more. 

When  the  advocates  and  defenders  of  the  home 
mission  work  came  forward  with  their  justification  and 
clear,  solid,  ( 'hristian  lil>eral  arguments,  it  was  a  relief 
to  every  missionary.  Their  representation  of  the 
claims  of  the  great  work  was  so  calm  and  couAdncing, 
and  at  the  same  time  so  kindly,  that  all  opposition  was 
finally  hushed  into  submission.  That  all  might  be 
satisfied  with  the  onward  movement,  it  was  determined 
that  a  conference  of  delegates  from  subordinate  meet- 
ings should  be  called,  where  the  subject  of  missions  of 
all  kinds  might  be  examined  and  dis^^ussed  apart  from 
other  church  business.  The  Quarterly  Meetings  were 
directed  to  sen<l  delegates,  and  the  Home  Missionary 


OF    ADDISON    COFFIN.  355 

coniiiiittec  was  made  a  part  of  the  conference,  riiis 
seemed  to  calm  the  troubled  waters,  and  the  meeting 
adjourned  nn(k'r  a  feeling  of  thankfulness  that  all  had 
ended  so  well. 

To  study  the  hearts  of  those  attending  the  meet- 
ing, J  spent  some  time  each  day  in  walking  about 
among  them,  and  in  sitting  down  and  looking  into  the 
faces  that  were  passing,  while  listening  to  their  kindly 
greetings  and  pleasant  talk,  I  studied  their  bearing 
one  towards  another.  1  had  learned  much  in  this  way 
before  the  discussion  of  home  missions  came  up.  That 
debate  opened  several  doors  to  my  secret  study,  and 
before  the  meeting  closed  I  had  gained  a  valuable  les- 
son in  humanity.  My  first  drill  in  this  kind  of  study 
was  among  the  ignorant  slaves  of  the  south,  but  this 
one  was  among  the  highest  civilization  of  the  world. 
If  I  should  draw  conclusions  it  would  be  that  a  crisis 
will  come  in  London  Yearly  Meeting,  which  if  passed 
successfully  will  be  glad  tidings  to  England  and  the 
world.  Through  Friends  there  will  be  a  revolution 
brought  about  that  will  send  peace  and  not  a  sword  ;o 
the  ends  of  the  earth,  and  the  Gospel  will  be  ])reached 
to  the  poor,  not  only  in  sinful  London,  l)ut  in  all  the 
r'v'-.es  of  the  world. 

The  most  remarkable  and  astonishing  statement 
made  (hiring  the  meeting  was  the  unquestioned  one 
that  there  were  thousads  of  heathen,  pure  and  simiile, 


356  LIFE    AND    TRAVELS 

within  an  hour's  walk  of  that  meeting.  One  speaker 
used  the  words  "ahnost  savages."  It  was  so  astound- 
ing to  me,  that  I  took  note  of  the  direction  indicated, 
an,]  subsequently  visited  that  part  of  the  city  and 
found  it  really  awful  and  horrible  in  suffering,  pov- 
erty, degradation,  starvation,  sin,  shame  and  untold 
c'ime.  A  place  to  make  the  soul  sick,  probably  the 
darkest  spot  on  earth;  it  would  be  hard  to  ovoj'draw 
the  I'icture  or  exaggerate  its  fearful  misery. 

'v^Tien  the  subject  of  corresponding  with  other 
Yearly  Meetings  was  under  consideration,  the  discus- 
sion took  a  wide  range,  and  was  not  only  surprising,  but 
almost  startling.  Some  of  the  members  proposed  (ior- 
rc?ponding  with  all  bodies  of  people  in  America  call- 
ing themselves  Friends.  Others  suggested  issuing  one 
epistle  for  all  the  meetings  of  the  United  Stares,  re- 
taining Canada  as  a  colonial  meeting.  Iowa  was  again 
reviewed  and  severely  criticised,  in  one  or  two  in- 
stances almost  amounting  to  persistent  misrepresenta- 
tion, but  as  on  previous  occasions,  the  clear  spiritual 
discernment,  sound  practical  wisdom  of  the  liberal  el  fo- 
ment of  the  meeting  prevailed,  and  it  was  decided  not 
to  vary  from  former  usages. 

In  discussing  the  report  on  schools,  and  the  edu- 
cation of  the  children  of  artisans  and  members  in  lim- 
ited circumstances,  a  very  strange  revelation  appeared 
behind  thescene,as  viewed  bv  anv  American  mind  and 


OF    ADDISON    COFFIN.  357 


''!'!! 


convictions.  It  was  evident  tliat  Engiish  Friends  w 
full  of  the  spirit  of  class  distinction,  yet  all  unconscious 
of  the  fact.  This  stands  as  a  barrier  in  their  wa}  to 
wider  usefulness.  The  poor  see,  feel  and  resent  that, 
spirit.  As  I  sat  listening  I  inwardly  exclaimed,  "Oh! 
that  they  could  see  themselves  as  others  see  them,  then 
what  wonderful  things  they  could  do.  Heathenism 
would  disappear  in  London  and  in  England;  a  might- 
ier'power  than  the  Salvation  Army  would  move  upon 
the  hearts  of  the  fallen." 

Another  ])ublic  meeting  was  held  on  the  25th, 
but  it  differed  from  the  previous  ones  only  in  the  char- 
acter of  the  sermons;  in  depth  of  real  spiritual  life  I 
had  rarely  heard  their  equal,  delivered  as  they  were 
before  an  audience  educated  and  trained  by  a  higher 
civiiization,  the  result  was  as  grand  and  inspiring  upon 
the  listener  as  our  finest  outpouring  of  lofty,  fiery  elo- 
(pience  upon  an  audience  of  hardy  pioneers. 

London  Yearly  Meeting  is  a  study,  for  its  influ- 
ence upon  England  and  the  English  speaking  people 
everywhere  is  out  of  proportir»n  to  the  number  of  its 
church  membership.  Why  it  should  be  so  is  not  easily 
understood  until  one  has  attended  its  annual  gather- 
ing and  studied  well  its  inner  life.  As  I  looked  and 
listened  T  saw  such  evidence  of  grand  spiritual  light, 
that  T  felt  almost  like  lx»wing  the  knee  in  reverence 
before  it  and  its  achievements,  but  before  words  could 

23 


358  LIFE    AND    TRAVELS 

be  framed  into  fitting  speech,  suddenly  I  was  startled 
by  the  falling  of  a  shadow  of  blind  devotion  and  rev- 
erence for  empty  forms  and  usages.  In  listening  to 
the  expression  of  opinions  relative  to  the  many  good 
works  in  which  the  membership  wiis  engaged,  I  could 
understand  why  Friends'  Monthly  Meetings  estab- 
lished in  the  wilderness  had  all  the  essential  elements 
within  themselves  of  civil  government  and  spiritual 
life.  It  was  easy  to  see  from  whence  came  William 
Penn's  wisdom,  bv  which  he  gave  the  only  model  .i>ov- 
ernment  the  world  has  seen  since  the  law  was  ^iven  to 
Moses.  We  can  also  realize  the  true  grandeur  of 
England's  higher  attainments  towards  a  Christian 
f'ivilization.  In  the  midst  of  my  joy  and  gladness' 
another  shadow  of  bigotry  and  prejudice  fell  and 
checked  my  enthusiasm.  So  we  find  it  in  many  other 
things.  It  seems  that  the  highest  civilization  and 
spiritual  growth  is  often  cumbered  by  human  weak- 
ness. 


CHAPTER   ELEVEN. 


London  to  the  Land  of  the  Midnight  Sun — Russia — 
Across  Europe — Italy,  Switzerland  France,  Spain 
and  Portugal — Back  to  London. 

Four  weeks  passed  so  pleasantly  in  London  sight- 
seeing and  at  our  quiet  home  that  we  were  almost  un- 
conscious of  the  lapse  of  time.  Our  kind  host,  John  B. 
Watts,  and  his  .three  bright,  charming  daughters,  and 
noble  son,  had  done  their  best  to  make  our  stay  both 
pleasant  and  restful.  Their  home  was  in  a  quiet  part 
of  the  city,  and  possessed  a  rare  treasure  in  a  beautiful 
green  yard  behind  the  house,  shut  in  by  trees  and 
vines.  On  this  green  we  spent  many  delightful  even- 
ings. My  friend,  John  Van  Lindley,  joined  the  young 
people  in  their  sports,  while  our  host  and  I  talked  of 
far-oif  lands,  and  of  life  in  London.  I  could  entertain 
him  with  stories  of  travel,  and  he  instructed  me  in 
English  history  and  England's  growth,  and  together 
w^e  discussed  the  all-absorbing  topics  of  the  day.  The 
subjects  which  claimed  much  attention  were  title  to 
real  estate,  ground  rents,  ninety-nine  year  leases,  en- 
tails, house  privileges,  etc.     The  close  of  May  warned 

(359) 


360  LIFE    AND    TRAVELS 

US  that  we  must  be  off  on  our  second  tour  while  health 
and  oj^portunity  offered. 

At  3  p.  in.  June  3d  we  took  train  for  Xorwich^ 
there  took  steamer  for  Piotterdam,  and  arrived  the  next 
morning.  We  rode  through  the  beautiful  tree-planted 
citv  and  its  profusion  of  flowers,  then  took  cars  for 
Amsterdam.  The  ride  through  the  rural  country  was 
especiallv  charming,  when  contrasted  with  the  endless 
brick  walls  and  stone  pavements  of  the  great  city. 
The  whole  country  is  intersected  by  large  canals,  in 
which,  in  many  places,  the  water  stands  above  sea  level, 
but  a  few  inches,  while  all  the  country  is  sub-divided 
by  small  canals  and  ditches,  most  of  them  several  feet 
below  sea  level,  which  stand  full  of  water,  the  surplus 
being  constantly  lifted  up  into  the  large  ones  by  thou- 
sands of  huge  windmills.  As  far  as  the  eye  can  see 
there  is  an  unbroken  expanse  of  green  fields  and 
avenues  of  trees  along  the  large  canals.  From  among 
small  clumps  of  trees  and  vines  arose  the  chimney  tops 
of  the  grand  old  Dutch  homes;  the  fields  and  farms  are 
subdivided  and  bounded  by  ditches,  which  serve  as 
fences,  and  for  highways,  as  much  of  the  travel  is 
done  by  water.  Strangers  are  astonished  at  the  num- 
ber of  small  boats  seen  on  hand  at  all  places.  They 
are  used  instead  of  wheeled  vehicles,  and  are  of  all 
sizes,  shapes  and  artistic  construction. 

The  larger  ])ortion  of  Holland  is  devoted  to  grow- 


OF    ADDISON    COFFIN.  361 

iiig  grass,  rye  and  millet,  the  other  to  gardening. 
There  are  thousands  of  spotted  cattle,  black  and  white, 
on  the  pastures.  In  nearly  all  the  fields  tubs  are  stand- 
ing containing  a  mixture  of  salt,  clay,  oil  cake  and 
sulphur  for  the  cattle  to  lick.  While  other  arrange- 
ments incident  to  dairying  gives  the  country  a  prac- 
tical, domestic,  homelike  look,  and  we  felt  that  we 
were  in  a  home  land.  Windmills  are  abundant,  and 
of  immense  size,  some  with  arms  thirty  feet  long,  and 
five  wide;  they  are  very  powerful  motors.  When  a 
score  of  them  are  in  sight  propelled  by  a  stiff  gale  they 
2:)resent  quite  an  imposing  appearance.  They  lift  or 
pump  the  water  from  the  lower  ditches  into  the  canals, 
and  move  the  rural  machinery  of  the  country. 

By  the  happy  counterbalance  of  wind  and  water, 
Holland  is  made  not  only  inhabitable,  but  a  land  of 
beauty  and  productiveness,  and  we  wonder  no  longer 
how  the  Dutch  have  managed  to  supply  the  world 
with  so  much  cheese. 

We  spent  a  dav  in  Amsterdam,  a  city  of  400,000 
inhabitants,  in  riding  on  the  street  cars  and  busses, 
through  the  long  shaded  avenues,  beautiful  parks  and 
gardens,  and  noted  the  profusion  of  flowers  that 
decorated  nearly  every  home,  showing  the  passionate 
fondness  for  plants  of  the  so-called  stately  Dutch. 
Many  of  the  streets  have  broad  canals  running 
through  them,  crowded  by  all  kinds  of  water  craft, 


362  LIFE    AND   TRAVELS 

from  the  fishing  boat  to  the  ocean  steamer.  Every- 
thing indicated  a  seafaring  commercial  people,  whose 
bronzed  features  and  fearless  bearing  showed  they 
were  a  race  "Who  go  down  to  the  sea  in  ships,"  and 
it  was  plain  to  be  seen  how  and  why  Holland  had  fur- 
nished so  many  old  ugly  fighting  sea  captains  in  the 
past,  and  disputed  so  long  with  England  for  the  su- 
premacy of  the  sea.  Even  yet  they  have  the  elements 
of  power  among  them,  and  are v  ready  to  fight  at  the 
smallest  provocation,  if  the  thing  would  pay. 

Erom  Amsterdam  we  started  by  rail  for  Bremen, 
Germany,  going  southeast  to  Wesel  up  the  valley  of 
the  Rhine,  then  north  and  in  a  circuitous  route  to  see 
more  countrv,  and  save  doubling  back,  and  we  were 
well  paid  for  doing  so.  Our  way  was  through  green 
pastures,  among  fields  of  grain,  extensive  gardens  and 
homes  adorned  with  the  ever  present  beautiful  flow- 
ers. We  passed  through  broad  level  plain-like  ex- 
panses, under  a  high  state  of  cultivation,  with  evi- 
dence of  thrift,  economy  and  industry,  and  were  still 
among  a  network  of  canals  which  covered  the  whole 
country.  Here  we  saw  the  pleasing  and  singular 
phenomenon  of  ships  and  steamers  sailing  across  gTeen 
fields,  through  orchards  and  gardens  and  standing  in 
the  frctnt  yards  of  many  residences.  Tn  reality  they 
were  sailing  in  the  large  canals  which  we  could  see 
only  as  we  crosserl  them.     This  is  one  of  the  channing 


OF   ADDISON    COFFIN.  363 

sights  of  this  country,  and  propably  not  to  be  seen  any 
other  place. 

Soon  after  passing  out  of  Holland  into  Germany, 
we  entered  the  wide  rolling  ])lain  that  we  had  crossed 
farther  south  on  our  trip  from  Constantinople,  with  the 
same  grand  succession  of  broad  green  fields,  pine  for- 
ests, and  fine  old  homes.  It  was  bright  June  weather. 
Everything  was  clothed  in  deepest  green.  The  rye 
fields  were  whitening  for  harvest,  the  wheat  in  full 
head,  the  clover  in  full  bloom,  the  door  yards  aglow 
with  flowers,  and  best  of  all,  bright,  happv  children 
were  out  in  the  warm  sunshine,  rolling,  romping  on  the 
grass,  climbing  the  trees,  and  the  boy  portion,  true  to 
life  the  world  over,  was  throwing  stones.  It  seemed 
like  riding  through  a  fairy  land  of  sunshine. 

We  had  an  opportunity  to  study  the  German  sys- 
tem of  forestry  in  this  part  of  the  country  better  than 
any  place  yet  visited.  In  western  Germany  forestry  is 
not  only  an  industry,  but  a  science.  We  passed  through 
a  country-  where  all  waste  and  unprofitable  land  was 
being  planted  in  timber,  and  there  were  many  valuable 
woods  of  well-kept  trees,  and  still  more  were  being 
planted,  which  in  time  will  be  both  useful  and  orna- 
mental. The  result  is  being  watched  withi  much  inter- 
est by  other  countries,  as  it  may  open  up  a  new  possibil- 
ity for  treeless  regions.  As  we  traveled  northwest  the 
interest  in  all  the  surroundings  increased.     On  all  sides 


364  LIFE    AND    TRAVELS 

were  grand  old  liomes,  where  families  had  lived  for 
centuries,  some  of  each  generation  remaining  with 
their  parents,  adding  house  to  house,  until  there  was 
a  beautiful  village  ai-ound  the  original  mansion,  giving 
all  an  additional  charm.  Old  trees  overshadowed  the 
village,  some  of  which  were  a  century  old.  Each  day 
we  marked  the  increase  of  sunlight  and  the  shortening 
of  darkness. 

With  feelings  approaching  the  enthusiastic,  we 
arrived  in  Bremen,  one  of  the  great  shipping  ports  of 
western  Europe,  a  city  that  bore  an  important  part  in 
the  middle  ages,  as  well  as  in  more  recent  times.  It 
was  a  bright,  warm  evening,  and  I  could  see  to  read 
until  a  late  hour.  A^ext  morning  I  could  see  to  write 
at  8  a.  m.,  and  there  seemed  to  be  an  unusual  stir  in  the 
city:  at  4  a.  m.  groups  of  people  were  moving  along 
the  street,  all  going  in  the  direction  of  what  seemed  a 
large  body  of  native  woodland.  The  throngs  gradu- 
ally increased  and  at  7:30  we  joined  the  multitude 
and  entered  the  forest.  There  we  learned  that  it  was  a 
national  festival,  held  in  a  wildwood  park.  Thei'e  was 
one  large  music  hall,  a  picture  gallery,  museum  and 
numbers  of  beer  gardens.  In  the  midst  of  the  grounds 
there  was  a  charming  lake  for  boating,  w^ith  serpentine 
shore.  Soon  the  park  teemed  with  tens  of  thousands 
of  peo]:)le  of  every  age  and  condition,  all  dressed  in 
their  best  clothes.    The  walks  were  filled  with  mothers 


OF    ADDISON    COFFIN.  365 

and  ha})py-fac-(:'(l  children.  Older  peojde  were  gath- 
ered around  the  heer  tables  swilling  at  their  mugs  and 
making  the  air  fetid  with  tobaeco  and  other  fumes. 
Others  were  listening  to  the  music  that  rose  and  fell 
in  thundering  peals.  The  old  and  infirm  for  the  time 
forgot  their  feebleness,  the  poor  forgot  their  poverty, 
the  sorrowing  forgot  their  troul)le.  The  hearts  of  the 
poor  were  made  glad  by  gifts  to  their  children  of 
sweetmeats  and  toys;  the  proud  and  haughty  unbent, 
the  aristocrat,  for  a  day  came  down  to  ordinary  life,  all 
blending  into  a  common  humanity  of  relaxation  and  so- 
ciability. To  me  it  was  a  day  of  deep  interest.  It 
g'ave  me  an  insight  into  German  character  seldom 
found,  for  during  that  day  the  old  Teutonic  heredity 
cropped  out  unawares.  I^pon  returning  from  the  park 
we  took  a  street  car  and  rode  through  the  long,  shaded 
streets,  visited  some  of  the  oldest  parts  of  the  city,. 
dating  back  into  the  days  of  war,  revolution  and  con- 
quest; we  also  passed  some  of  the  wane  vats,  which  had 
figured  in  the  scenes  of  the  days  of  chivalry.  At  7:30 
p.  m.  we  started  for  Hamburg  and  arrived  there  at 
10  p.  m.,  while  it  was  still  light. 

xvText  morning  we  were  out  early;  took  a  street 
car  and  rode  many  miles  through  the  city  and  out  into 
some  beautiful  suburbs,  where  the  houses  were  all 
aflame  with  brilliant  flowers  and  plants.  TVe  then 
took  a  walk  along  the  docks  and  wharves,  among  the 


366  LIFE    AND    TRAVELS 

canals  and  storage  depots.  We  noted  the  stagnant 
water  and  unhealthy  condition  in  nearlv  all  the  canals, 
and  predicted  fatal  resnlts,  if  the  cholera  should  come 
to  western  Europe,  which  it  did  two  months  later. 
This  city  is  very  old  and  was  made  notorious  by  the 
First  NaiX)leon,  who  purposed  to  construct  an  im- 
mense navy-yard  at  this  ])lace  in  which  to  build  ships 
to  invade  England.  History  tells  of  his  distastrous 
failure,  and  that  by  it  the  town  Hamburg  was  given  to 
the  world ;  the  name  signifies  total  failure. 

From  Hamburg  wecontinued  northward,  through 
the  same  rich  IcA-el  country,  mostly  in  grass,  on  which 
vast  numbers  of  cattle  were  grazing.  They  were  rather 
larger  than  Holland  cattle,  but  smaller  than  English 
or  American.  The  whole  land  is  divided  into  small 
fields  or  lots.  It  was  a  surprise  to  find  many  large  peat 
bogs  along  our  route.  Hundreds  of  men  were  busy 
cutting  and  stacking  the  peat  sod  to  drv  for  winte* 
fuel;  in  some  bog^  the  quantitv  i)iled  up  would  seem 
amazing  to  those  ignorant  of  its  use  and  value  as  fuel. 
It  takeis  the  place  of  the  coal  and  wood  used  in 
America. 

We  arrived  at  Kiel,  on  the  Baltic  sea,  June  7th, 
the  day  the  Em|>erors  of  Germany  and  E-ussia  met  in 
that  city,  and  we  were  much  pleased  with  the  coinci- 
dence. It  was  especially  interesting  to  me  when  I  re- 
called the  historv  of  all  that  north  countrv  for  the  last 


OF    ADDISON    COFFIN.  367 

ten  ceDtiiries,  to  \he  tirno  when  Russia  was  unknown 
as  a  power  in  Knrope,  wliile  the  Norsemen  dominated 
western  Europe,  and  as  J  saw^  it  there  and  then,  how 
chan<yed!  It  was  truly  a  grand  day  in  XieL  Each 
emperor  was  escorted  by  a  fleet  of  gun  boats  and  a 
strong-  marine  guard,  with  a  fine  display  of  all  the 
dignity  and  majesty  of  royalty.  Most  of  the  inhabi- 
tants were  out,  together  with  many  thousands  from 
other  cities  and  towns,  who  were  charmed  and  enter- 
tained by  the  splendid  music  of  the  bands,  the  marvel- 
ous evfiliitions  of  the  marines  and  the  deafening  salvos 
of  heavy  guns  fired  by  the  fleets  and  responded  to  by 
the  shore  batteries.  The  harbor  was  alive  wnth  pleas- 
ure boats  and  steamers,  gaily  decorated  with  flags  and 
fancy  streamers.  The  whole  city  was  aflutter  with 
banners.  When  starlight  came  the  sky  was  ablaze  with 
rockets  and  fire  balls,  flashing  out  their  meteoric  show- 
evs.  At  11  p.  m.  the  departure  of  the  two  emperors 
was  announced  by  the  simultaneous  discharge  of  one 
hundred  and  twenty  heavy  guns,  which  shook  the 
solid  earth  wnth  their  deafening  roar.  Tt  was  another 
opportunity  to  study  Europeanism,  and  T  tried  to  take 
the  lesson  with  all  its  surroundings  for  future  use.  T 
spent  most  of  the  time  walking  amid  the  throngs 
watching  the  expression  of  countenances,-«o  as  to  see 
in  wbat  w^ay  the  vast  pageant  was  affecting  them.  T 
especially  noted  the  children,  who  were  out  by  the 


368  LIFE    AND    TRAVELS 

thousands,  with,  eyes  dilated,  faces  all  agiow,  their 
faculties  strung  to  the  highest  point  of  tension. 

When  the  last  salute  was  tired_,  the  last  shower  of 
rockets  discharged,  there  was  not  a  child  in  all  the 
thousands  but  received  a  lasting  impression  of  the 
wonderful  power  and  majesty  of  royalty,  which  every 
succeeding  display  of  the  kind  would  keep  alive  and 
strengthen,  and  thus  they  would  grow  to  maturity  with 
a  reverence  for  the  emperor  and  the  nobility,  and  be 
willing  to  submit  to  an  oppressive  rod.  This  the 
crowned  heads  appreciate,  and  never  miss  an  oppor- 
tunity to  cultivate  and  intensify.  While  I  was  learn- 
ing this  lesson,  1  thought  of  the  tens  of  thousands  who 
were  that  day  starving  in  southern  Russia,  and  of  the 
ship  loads  of  republican  flour  that  was  sailing  at  that 
very  moment  to  relieve  that  starvation,  while  the  two 
emperors  were  squandering  thousands  of  doUai's  in 
that  worse  than  sinful  display. 

At  1  a.  m.  we  took  a  steamer  for  Korsor,  on  the 
island  of  Zealand,  where  we  arrived  at  9  a.  m.,  June 
Sth,  and  took  rail  at  once  for  Copenhagen,  arriving  at 
10:80  a.  m.  After  lunch  we  boarded  a  street  car  and 
rode  many  miles  through  and  across  the  city ;  then  we 
took  a  walk  into  back  ways,  looking  into  odd  places 
and  seeing  many  strange  things,  with  undesirable  en- 
counters as  to  smells  and  sounds,  incident  to  haunts  of 
poverty,  suffering  and  sin.     Copenhagen  is  an  inter- 


OF    ADDISON    COFFIN.  369 

esting  old  city,  with  a  history  that  goes  back  two 
thousand  years.  It  was  one  of  the  strongholds  of  the 
old  Viking  kings,  and  bore  its  full  share  in  the  wars 
and  revolutions  of  modern  times.  It  has  350,000  in- 
habitants now,  and  will  continue  to  be  an  important 
place  for  a  long  time  to  come.  It  is  still  beautiful  in 
spite  of  age.  The  old  high  gabled,  tile  covered  houses 
make  a  pleasant  contrast  with  the  modern  style  of 
adorning  with  tinsel.  The  people  of  the  w^ide  world 
today  seem  to  have  little  knowledge  of  the  history  of 
that  north  country.  The  mass  of  humanity  are  ap- 
parently wholly  ignorant  of  the  wonderful  power  and 
influence  Denmark  exercised  in  controlling  and  col- 
lecting what  was  called  ''Sound  dues,"  toll  exacted 
from  all  ships  entering  the  Baltic  sea  through  the  nar- 
row^ sound.  The  final  abolition  of  these  dues  became 
an  international  question  and  agitated  Europe  for  sev- 
eral years.  This  fact  seems  to  have  dropped  out  of 
popular  history,  yet  it  came  and  went  within  my  mem- 
ory, as  did   the  abolition  of  the  corn  law  of  England. 

We  left  Copenhagen  by  rail  for  Elsinore,  where 
we  crossed  the  sound  into  Sweden.  The  ferryboat 
that  took  us  over  brought  2000  Swedish  children  to 
Zealand  on  a  picnic.  It  was  a  charming  and  almost 
marvelous  sight  to  see  the  order  and  ease  by  which  so 
many  children  were  disembarked  without  accident; 
they  were  in  charge  of  young  ladies,  who  formed  them 


370  LIFE    AND    TRAVELS 

in  a  procession  and  marclied.  to  a  beautiful  grove, 
where  a  festival  was  to  be  held  in  the  wann  sunlight. 
We  entered  into  Sweden  at  11  a.  m.,  and  I  was 
full  of  feelings  of  joy  and  triumph  that  I  had  at  last 
reached  the  land  of  mv  paternal  ancestors;  the  land  of 
the  grand  old  A^orsenien,  and  of  the  heroic  Swedes  of 
modern  history.  With  eager  eyes  and  listening  ears 
we  started  by  rail  for  Christiana  in  Xorway,  372 
miles  away.  Every  place  had  an  interest,  every  hord, 
battle  and  contest;  all  the  broad  fields  and  green  val- 
leys had  been  the  homes  of  happy  thousands  through 
long  centuries;  the  nursery  of  millions  of  brave  men, 
who  were  master  spirits  for  a  thousand  years.  The 
history  of  their  noble  deeds  and  acts  of  tyranny,  their 
otirling  virtues  and  disgraceful  crimes,  their  daring 
deeds  of  discovery,  their  conquests  and  the  wild  career 
of  old  Sigurd,  the  crusader,  had  impressed  and 
charmed  my  early  life,  and  when  I  found  myself  actu- 
ally passing  through  the  wonderful  land  not  in  dreams, 
but  in  fact,  I  was  so  full  of  strong  emotions  that  utter- 
ance was  taken  away.  Earth,  air,  tree  and  water 
seemed  to  glow  in  the  sunlight  with  unnatural  bril- 
liancy; but  there  came  a  reaction,  and  I  saw  things  in 
a  more  practical  light,  and  began  to  draw  pictures  in 
memory  for  use  at  future  times.  For  fifty  miles  the 
country  was  almost  level,  very  rich  and  in  high  state  of 
cultivation.    Like  Zealand,  it  was  one  wide  expanse  of 


OF    ADDISON    COFFIN.  371 

rural  beauty,  witli  abundant  evidence  of  solid  Lome 
comforts  and  wealth.  From  the  green  lowland  we 
g-radually  ascended  among  the  rucky  hills,  which  were 
covered  with  pines,  that  slowly  increased  in  extent  as' 
the  hills  grew  into  low  mountains,  and  we  were  soon 
among  some  of  the  great  pine  forests,  and  on  the  out- 
skirts of  the  lumber  regions.  As  we  advanced  objects 
of  interest  opened  up  on  every  side.  There  were  nar- 
row green  valleys  among  the  mountains,  overlooked 
by  dark  forests,  dotted  with  lovely  houses,  which  had  a 
peculiarly  charming,  romantic  look,  amid  such  grand 
surroundings. 

We  were  full  of  enthusiasm  for  the  north  coun- 
try, when  we  arrived  at  Christiana  in  ^^orway,  where 
we  found  much  that  was  decidedly  interesting,  which 
modern  history  does  not  record,  and  of  which  little 
seems  to  be  known  by  this  generation.  There  are  old 
monuments,  old  buildings,  museums,  galleries  of  paint- 
ings of  rare  beauty,  old  runic  collections  which  now 
have  a  double  interest  since  the  Anglo-saxon  is  found 
to  be  the  lost  sheep  of  the  house  of  Israel.  The  monu- 
ment of  Sigurd,  the  crusader,  is  held  almost  sa(;red  l)y 
the  people.  The  old  shi])  recently  unearthed,  built  a 
thousand  years  ago,  has  a  special  interest  as  showing 
the  skill  in  ship  building  at  that  time.  There  is  a  very 
massive  tower  standing  on  a  hill  outside  the  city.  No 
one  knows  by  wdiom  or  for  what  purpose  it  was  built, 


372  LIFE    AND    TRAVELS 

all  is  iiiysterv.     There  i?;  no  tower  like  it  in  Xorway, 
and  it  stands  there  alone  and  unknown. 

AVe  went  north  over  a  hundred  miles  to  see  the 
forests  in  all  their  native  grandeur.  Upon  returning  we 
started  east  t-^ward  Stockholm,  on  the  Gulf  of  Bothnia. 
The  whole  trip  across  Sweden  was  one  continual 
change  between  green  valley,  bright  sparkling  lake, 
pine  covered  hills,  clear  rapid  streams ;  and  many  times 
all  these  were  grouped  into  one  scene,  forming  a  pic- 
ture that  v/as  marvelous  for  its  blending  of  all  that  was 
romantic,  wild  and  rugged.  The  steady  lengthening 
of  the  days,  the  mild  and  soothing  sunlight  that  falls 
over  the  dark  green  pines,  when  it  is  night  in  other 
parts  of  the  world,  throws  a  strong  facination  over  the 
mind  which  is  both  pleasing  and  startling.  When  we 
reached  Stockholm  we  were  sui*|:>rised  to  find  it  so 
charmingly  situated,  and  so  beautiful,  the  most  so  of 
any  city  in  Europe,  if  not  in  the  world.  Every  ele- 
ment necessary  to  make  it  thus  seems  to  be  there,  and 
the  taste  and  practical  skill  of  an  intelligent  people 
has  been  utilized  to  adorn  the  city  and  perfect  the  har- 
bor, wh'ch  is  situated  at  the  outlet  of  a  vast  inland 
system  of  lakes  and  rivers.  There  are  manv  ]:)leasure 
boats  which  take  tourists  long  rides  among  the  hills, 
along  the  river?  and  connected  lakes,  amid  romantic 
and  interesting  scenes.  There  are  also  many  lumber 
ships  going  up  the  river  and  into  ;he  lakes  for  lumber. 


OF   ADDISON    COFFIN.  373 

borne  of  them  are  constructed  so  as  to  carry  whole  trees 
to  be  used  for  piliug.  These  are  takeu  all  over  the 
world  and  acknowledged  a  superior  article. 

The  ice  and  snow  do  not  all  disappear  in  the 
great  interior  forests  until  June,  and  then  come  six  to 
eight  weeks  of  constant  daylight  and  hot  weather. 
The  rivei^  are  still  flush,  fish  are  abundant,  and  vege- 
tation makes  a  marvelous  growth  under  the  stimulus 
of  light  and  heat.  This  is  the  time  cf  year  to  visit 
Stockholm  and  the  far  north.  Twilight  begins  about 
the  12  th  of  June,  and  there  is  but  a  short  space  of  time 
between  sunset  and  sunrise.  During  the  twilight  we 
could  see  to  read.  June  12th  I  read  until  11:30  p.  m., 
and  at  1  a.  m.  the  sun  was  visible,  and  at  12:30,  mid- 
night, June  15th,  we  took  a  coasting  steamer  for 
Haparanda  in  the  far  north,  and  w^ent  up  the  Gulf  of 
Bothnia.  The  ride  down  the  river  and  out  into  the 
open  water  was  very  fine.  Seen  at  an  hour  when  our 
distant  homes  were  shrouded  in  darkness  made  it  more 
impressive.  As  we  went  north  we  left  all  night  for 
many  days. 

The  scenery  up  the  gulf  is  grand,  not  only  on  ac- 
count of  its  beauty,  but  because  of  its  distinctive  native 
peculiaritr.  All  along  its  shores  are  narrow  inlets 
called  fiords.  These  run  back  sometimes  many  miles 
and  terminate  in  a  land-locked  bay.  Other  times  they 
are  the  outlet  of  lakes  and  great  watersheds.  Often 
24 


374  LIFE    AND   TRAVELS 

they  are  but  two  or  three  hundred  feet  wide,  but  forty 
or  fifty  feet  deep,  so  the  largest  ships  can  be  towed 
in  and  out.  From  the  fiords  small  side  valleys  run  out 
between  the  hills  which  are  all  in  meadow,  with  cat- 
tle grazing  in  the  bright  sunlight;  sometimes  there 
will  be  a  broad  expanse  where  the  mountains  fall 
away  and  the  hills  sink,  a  charming  picture  of  rural 
life  peculiar  to  Sweden. 

As  we  went  up  the  gulf,  each  day  everything  be- 
came more  interesting,  the  night  disappeared,  the  two, 
then  one  hour  of  twilight  came,  then  none  at  all,  and 
all  was  day;  that  is,  though  the  sun  disappears  below 
the  hc^rizon  the  light  is  clear  as  if  the  sun  were  only 
behind  a  cloud  at  noon.  In  many  places  there  were 
so  many  small  islands  that  the  way  seemed  completely 
closed  in,  but  a  sudden  turn  around  a  headland,  and 
a  broad  expanse  of  sparkling  water  would  appear. 
We  were  not  out  of  sia'ht  of  land  at  any  time;  the 
beautiful  pine-covered  islands,  or  green  mountains 
were  always  in  view,  and  the  eye  did  not  grow  weary 
with  the  ever  changing  panorama  amid  unfailing  light. 
Even  the  desire  for  sleep  left  me  while  in  the  land  of 
daylight. 

Xot  the  least  wonderful  thing  seen  along  the 
coast  and  in  the  fiords  is  the  vast  amount  of  lumber.  It 
is  piled  up  on  the  shores  and  in  great  rafts  afloat  in  the 
bays, which  were  constantly  being  loaded  into  ships  and 


OF   ADDISON   COFFIN.  375 

eoastiiiii'  steamers  in  quantities  almost  beyond  com- 
putation; the  lumber  ships  are  seen  by  hundreds  load- 
ing for  every  part  of  the  world.  We  went  ashore  at 
Umea  to  see  one  of  the  largest  lumber  yards  in  Europe, 
if  not  in  the  world.  1  had  seen  some  of  the  largest 
lumber  districts  in  the  United  States,  as  at  Detroit, 
Chicago,  St.  Louis,  Portland,  Oregon,  San  Francisco, 
Xew  Orleans,  New  York  and  Boston,  but  the  lumber 
yard  at  Umea  was  nearly  equal  to  them  all  combined; 
there  was  a  small  bay,  about  five  miles  in  circuit,  at  the 
head  of  a  fiord  at  the  mouth  of  a  river,  which  had 
a  large  number  of  mills  running  all  the  time,  for  there 
Avas  no  night,  and  the  shore  of  the  entire  bay  was  piled 
with  lumber  from  twelve  to  twenty  feet  high.  I 
counted  one  hundred  ships  loading  with  lumber  for 
foreign  markets.  With  my  glass  this  whole  wonder- 
ful sight  could  be  seen  from  a  small  hill.  I  could  see 
the  derricks  swinging  their  immense  loads  of  lumber 
from  off  shore  on  to  the  ships,  hundreds  of  stalwart, 
bronzed  men  were  stowdng  it  away.  It  was  a  scene 
worth  a  long  journey  to  witness.  It  would  have  been 
interesting  anywhere,  but  seen  in  that  far  north 
country  under  perpetual  daylight,  as  we  saw  it,  it 
became  doubly  so.  Here,  I  may  say,  that  Sweden  and 
Xonvay  have  been  furnishing  Europe  with  lumber 
for  centuries,  and  they  can  do  it  for  a  long  time  to 
come.     The  forests  reproduce  very  rapidly  when  cut 


376  LIFE    AND    TRAVELS 

down,  and  the  goverument  now  regulates  the  cutting, 
so  the  supply  will  be  virtually  perpetual.  Besides, 
since  the  building  of  railroads  in  Russia,  many  millions 
of  acres  of  splendid  pine  forests  have  been  available 
for  the  market.  Russia,  also,  regulates  the  cutting  of 
her  forests  to  insure  a  continuous  growth.  The  lum- 
ber business  furnishes  labor  for  half  the  people  of 
^N'orway  and  Sweden,  and  many  thousands  of  the 
young  men  serve  as  sailors  on  foreign  vessels,  espe- 
cially English,  and  in  addition  to  the  good  wages, 
learn  different  language*  and  make  interpreter>  and 
guides. 

Our  steamer  often  stop))ed  from  three  to  six 
hours  at  tlie  wav  ports.  This  gave  opportunitv  to  g(^ 
ashore  and  see  the  villages  and  people,  sometimes  to 
take  long  walks  over  the  hills,  and  to  see  the  peculiar 
construction  of  the  log  houses  in  universal  use;  the  size, 
color  and  quality  of  the  horset^  and  cattle,  their  little 
one-horse  carts,  the  odd  aiTangement  of  the  harness, 
etc.,  with  much  more  that  was  novel  and  pleasing. 
Another  thing  we  enjoyed  was  the  curiosity  of  the 
natives  in  wondering  why  two  old  foreigners  should 
wander  about  seemingly  with  no  business  in  view. 
Ordinary  tourists  went  to  the  hotels  and  asserted  their 
dignity,  or  to  the  saloons  and  drank  strong  drink. 
Therefore,  the  people  scrutinized  us,  gave  a  signifi- 
cant shrug  of  the  shoulder  and  head,  and  let  us  pass 


OF   ADDISON    COFFIN.  377 

on,  thinking,  "thouah  daft  tliey  are  harmless,"  and 
we  went  on  oiir  way  and  enjoyed  oiir  opinions,  and 
highly  prized  the  facts  we  learned. 

At  Liilia  we  stopped  some  hours,  from  9 :30  p.  m. 
to  1  a.  m.,  as  there  was  much  freight  being  handled. 
It  was  as  light  as  noonday  and  I  could  not  sleep  with 
wondei'S  all  around  me.  When  we  pushed  off  we  had 
200  boys  on  board,  sons  of  lumbermen,  who  were 
going  to  a  military  barracks  up  the  coast  for  their  first 
two  months'  drill  service  for  the  army.  They  were 
samples  of  undefiled  Swedish  life  and  home  training, 
wild  as  colts,  good  natured,  gay  as  birds,  full  of  frolic 
and  fun;  they  could  play  leap  frog  with  such  a  vim 
that  they  seemed  as  though  thev  would  stove  in  the 
deck.  Yet  there  was  not  an  angry  word,  or  row  of 
an}^  kind  among  them.  They  disembarked  at  Torra, 
and  broke  away  from  all  discipline  and  ran  shouting 
up  the  hill,  wliere  a  file  of  solcliers  were  waving  their 
caps  and  cheering.  AVe  now  entered  a  more  beautiful 
fiord  than  any  we  had  yet  seen.  For  about  ten  miles 
the  country  was  a  broad  expanse  of  open  grass  land, 
thickly  dotted  with  homes.  The  return  down  the 
fiord  was  fine  beyond  description,  the  sun  shone  from 
the  northwest  lighting  up  CA^erything  with  the  first 
soft  yellow  light  we  had  seen.  We  entered  the  Hapa- 
randa  river  at  the  head  of  the  gulf  at  10  p.  m.  with  the 
sun  ^^hining  brightly.     It  was  six  miles  up  to  the  city. 


378  LIFE    AND    TRAVELS 

where  we  arrived  at  11:20  p.  ]ii.,  wlien  the  sun  seemed 
to  sink  behind  the  land,  Init  after  we  had  walked  three 
hundred  yards  into  the  city,  the  sun  was  still  visible 
among  the  pines,  and  at  12:15  a.  m.  it  was  above  the 
pines  and  very  bright.  We  saw  the  sun  at  midnight 
for  the  first  time  between  June  18th  and  19th,  1892. 
Thouoh  we  had  attained  one  of  the  ambitions  of 
life,  yet  it  was  not  as  sensational  as  expected  on  ac- 
count of  the  gradual  approach  and  the  becoming  ac- 
customed to  the  continuous  light  for  several  days  be- 
fore, yet  it  was  grand  beyond  expression  to  really  see 
the  sun  at  midnight  with  our  living  eyes.  At  twelve 
o'clock  the  night  of  the  19th,  the  sun  just  touched  the 
horizon  again  in  a  clear  sky ;  when  an  hour  above,  the 
light  assumed  a  soft  yellow  color,  and  a  feeling  of  still- 
ness and  quiet  seemed  to  rest  on  all  nature;  the  rays  of 
the  sun  appeared  to  slightly  vibrate.  This  was  prob- 
ably caused  by  coming  ajeross  a  broad  expanse  of  water 
in  the  river.  The  birds  grew  still  when  the  sunlight 
turned  yellow,  the  chicikens  rested  from  their  labor, 
the  cattle,  horses  and  sheep  laid  down  on  the  grass; 
all  was  still  except  the  people ;  they  seemed  to  be  going 
continuously.  Vegetation  was  making  marvelous 
growth.  In  six  weeks  all  kinds  of  vegetables  mature, 
such  as  cabbage,  beets,  turnips,  Irish  potatoes,  beans, 
peas,  pumpkins,  tomatoes,  etc.  Eye,  that  is  up  three 
inches  when  the  snow^  disappears,  will  be  fit  to  cut  in 


OF    ADDISON    COFFIN.  379 

six  weeks,  and  &o  it  is  with  wheat,  barley  and  grass. 
The  snow  brings  down  large  (Quantities  of  ammonia, 
which  is  taken  up  by  the  soil  and  makes  plant  food 
abundant;  then  the  stimulus  of  constant  sunlight, 
heat  moisture  and  highly  electritied  air  causes  all  vege- 
tation to  develop  in  a  way  not  seen  anywhere  else. 

The  midnight  of  the  20th  was  partly  obscured  by 
clouds,  but  was  more  beautiful  than  the  sunlight. 
From  behind  the  clouds  brilliant  streams  of  light 
radiated  in  all  directions,  the  flashes  going  upward  re- 
minded me  of  some  thunder  storms  at  home,  when 
flashes  of  sunlight  break  through  the  advancing  storm, 
but  there  was  the  constant,  ever-changing  streams 
that  seemed  to  be  phosphorescent  in  their  composition. 
I  sat  up  to  see  the  wonderful  display ;  nor  was  the  flash- 
ing light  alone  interesting;  everything  on  all  sides 
was  full  of  beauty.  I  felt  that  the  earth  and  air  had 
new  combinations  of  natural  forces,  but  predominating 
over  all  was  the  highly  electrified  condition. 

We  spent  part  of  the  tinae  walking  about  among 
the  scrub  timl:>er  and  through  the  low  marsh  lands, 
and  at  almost  every  step  made  some  new  and  startling 
discovery.  The  whole  country  was  strewed  with 
water-worn  bowlders.  In  places  they  are  piled  up  in 
long  walls  as  perfectly  arranged  as  if  put  there  by 
skilled  masons,  in  other  places  they  are  in  well-shaped 
coned  mounds.     These,  by  a  majority  of  travelers,  are 


380  LIFE    AND    TRAVELS 

mistaken  for  old  runic  remains,  but  a  careful  inspec- 
tion shows  that  it  is  the  work  of  the  pushing  power  of 
ice  in  its  periodic  freezing  and  expansion;  in  many 
places  large  bowlders  have  been  pushed  several  hun- 
dred feet,  deeply  striating  the  bedded  rock,  and  com- 
pact gravel  and  clay.  The  gulf  has  once  been  much 
larger  than  now  and  is  still  receding.  As  the  \vat(T 
line  changes  the  ice  reaches  new  stones  and  pu-hes 
them  ashore,  and  the  walls  thus  pushed  into  position 
show  the  different  levels  of  the  water  in  the  past. 

AVe  crossed  the  long  foot  bridge  across  the  river 
to  Tamea  on  the  Tniland  side,  and  found  an  odd  old 
church;  it  belonged  to  the  period  of  at  least  1200  years 
ago.  It  was  built  of  heavy  pine  logs,  which  would  bear 
powerful  thumping  before  giving  way.  The  stone 
wall  by  which  it  was  surrounded  is  still  standing,  and 
is  six  feet  above  ground  and  six  feet  thick.  It  had  been 
used  both  as  a  church  and  as  a  place  of  defense  in  time 
of  danger,  but  the  most  astonishing  thins:  was  the 
names  on  the  old  tombstones.  Even  to  the  very  oldest 
written  in  the  present  alphabet,  they  were  but  a  repeti- 
tion of  family  names  now  found  in  Xantucket,  Xorth 
Carolina  and  other  parts  of  America.  Some  that  were 
five  hundre<l  years  old  were  still  legible. 

To  me  this  discovery  was  priceless  in  one  respect. 
It  opened  up  new  light  on  the  Anglo-Israel  subject  and 
confirmed  manv  farnilv  traditions.     It  intensified  mv 


OF   ADDISON    COFFIN.  381 

interest  in  that  country,  and  proves  that  there  is  much 
vahiable  history  lost  by  our  ignorance  of  the  region 
inchided  in  Denmark,  Xorway,  SAveden,  Finland  and 
the  Baltic  provinces.  From  Sweden  may  yet  come 
master  spirits  that  may  save  Europe,  as  did  Gust^vus 
nearly  three  hundred  years  ago,  for  the  race  is  not  de- 
generating by  immigration,  nor  exhausted  by  emigra- 
tion, but  is  simply  resting  while  the  pendulum  of 
events  swings  to  the  opposite  point  of  the  arc. 

Oji  the  21st  there  were  some  clouds,  but  the  mid- 
night view  was  pretty  good.  Just  after  the  sun  passed 
the  lowest  depression,  it  went  behind  a  narrow  belt  of 
clouds,  which  became  at  once  intenselv  luminous. 
During  the  passage  it  seemed  to  partake  of  the  brilliant 
_^low  of  the  northern  light,  though  not  flashing. 
Most  of  the  day  preceding  we  spent  looking  into  the 
out  houses,  barns  and  snow  sheds  to  see  what  winter 
life  was  in  that  latitude.  There  was  every  possible 
machine,  device  and  implement  for  working  in,  on 
and  with  snow,  gTeat  heavy  sleds  like  those  used  in 
Canada,  as  well  as  smaller  ones  for  light  work,  all 
kinds  of  craft,  hand  sleds,  snow  shoes,  fur  and  reindeer 
robes,  and  foot  guards,  and  many  things  of  which  we 
know  nothing.  Contrary  to  the  teaching  ol  booKs, 
there  is  no  real  darkness  in  the  winter,  the  bright 
snow  and  constant  coruscation  of  the  electric  flashes. 
or  northern  light,  make  it  nearly  as  light  as  a  full 


382  LIFE    AND    TRAVELS 

moon  on  snow  in  Indiana.  The  men  can,  and  do,  cut 
logs  all  winter  in  the  forests,  and  make  them  into  rafts 
on  the  ice  to  Hoat  to  the  mills  on  the  coast  with  the 
spring  flood.  These  are  but  a  few  of  the  conditiona 
we  lind  in  the  land  of  the  midnight  sun,  and  I  must  say 
here,  there  are  many  other  places  much  better  than 
Haparanda  to  see  the  j^henomena,  but  it  costs  more 
money  and  time.  One  can  go  where  the  sun  shines 
constantly  for  two  months,  and  wdiere  people  live 
with  tolerable  comfort,  if  they  have  plenty  of  money, 
an  article  which  was  not  very  abundant  with  us. 

We  arranged  to  stai^t  on  the  return  trip  the  morn- 
ing of  the  23d  by  steamer,  and  fortunately  the  pre- 
vious midnight  the  sun  was  obscured  by  clouds,  which 
became  luminous,  as  if  radiating  light  themselves,  but 
soon  afterward  they  pai'ted  and  let  the  sunlight 
through,  w^hich  shone  like  sheets  of  flame  on  their 
illuminated  sides.  This  was  more  wonderful  than 
anytliing  we  had  seen,  and  it  left  an  enduring  picture. 
"We  had  seen  the  grand  sight  of  the  midnight  sun  in 
all  its  beauty.  We  were  full  of  its  grandeur  and 
sublimity,  so  we  made  haste  to  pass  on  before  anything 
could  mar  the  picture. 

At  6:30  a.  m.,  June  23d,  we  took  a  small  steamer 
for  Uleaborg,  in  Finland.  It  was  rather  a  cool, 
drizzling  day,  but  we  made  the  port  at  6  p.  m.  The 
24tli  was  the  great  festival  of  midsummer  Sunday  in 


OF    ADDISON    COFFIN.  383 

Finland,  and  we  stopped  to  see  it.  While  there  we 
made  the  acquaintance  of  Prof.  Alfred  Eckholm,  one 
of  Finland's  leading  champions  against  Russian  at- 
tempts to  encroach  on  their  freedom.  From  him  I 
learned  much  of  the  legendary  history  of  Finland  and 
Scandinavia  as  a  whole.  I  also  caught  a  glimpse  of 
the  inner  life  of  freedom  that  is  growing  strong  in 
secret  and  will  one  day  astonish  all  Europe  and  make 
Uncle  Sam  glad. 

AVe  were  taken  to  the  beautiful  park  on  the  river 
by  the  professor  where  thousands  of  the  people  col- 
lected to  hear  addresses,  listen  to  splendid  music,  the 
singing  of  triumphal  patriotic  songs  of  freedom,  where 
they  ate,  drank  and  were  happy  and  forgot  their  sor- 
rows for  a  time.  From  5  p.  m.  to  3  a.  m.  the  festival 
went  on  amid  the  soft,  bright  sunlight,  and  the  pleas- 
ant sound  of  the  waters  of  the  ffreat  rapids,  until  the 
music  and  song  began  to  die  away,  and  soon  all  were 
gone,  but  the  drunken,  who  were  left  to  sleep  out  their 
stupor,  for  there  was  nothing  to  molest  them. 

That  day's  mingling  with  the  multitude,  together 
with  Prof.  Eckholm's  rare  ability  to  impart  historic 
information,  made  it  a  day  long  to  be  remembered, 
and  the  lesson  was  invaluable  in  the  line  of  some  of 
my  spe<'ialt.ies.  Here  I  was  shown  a  singular  record. 
For  four  hundred  years  an  accurate  account  has  been 
kept  of  the  gradual  rising  of  that  north  country  out  of 


384  LIFE    AND    TRAVELS 

the  water.  It  has  been  twelve  inclies  for  every  fifty 
years,  as  marked  on  a  stone  pier,  where  all  can  see.  It 
is  also  recorded  in  the  college.  The  harbors,  outlets 
and  cliffs  show  that  this  had  been  going  on  long  before 
the  a,ctual  gain  Avas  thus  noted.  At  Copenhagen  there 
has  been  no  change  in  the  water  line  in  that  period  of 
time.    Why  no  one  knows. 

At  Uleaborg  we  took  rail  and  ran  down  to  Waso, 
on  the  east  shore  of  the  gulf.  Here  the  train  stopped 
for  all  parties  to  stay  over  night.  The  passengers  went 
into  a  large  hall  and  laid  down  on  cots  and  at  5  a.  m. 
were  awakened  and  the  journey  resumed.  We  now 
ran  out  into  the  lake  region,  and  were  surprised  to 
find  a  fine,  fertile,  rural  country  under  a  high  state 
of  cultivation,  fully  equal  to  Denmark  and  Sweden 
in  all  the  elements  of  nationality,  instead  of  being  a 
bleak,  frozen  region,  with  dwai*fish,  stupid  people.  It 
is  quite  the  contrary.  The  people  are  a  well-developed 
and  a  fearless  race,  patriotic  to  a  fault.  The  last  day 
we  were  in  Finland,  a  drunken  man  who  could  talk 
American  boarded  the  train  and  began  conversation. 
He  said  his  home  was  in  Michigan  and  he  claimed 
American  citizenship.  He  was  still  drinking,  and  he 
soon  began  to  use  foul-mouthed  American  vulgarity. 
When  I  re(|uested  him  to  stop  hi?  talk,  he  became 
abusive  and  violent.  T  at  once  astonished  the  con- 
ductor and  mail  agent  l»y  demanding  that  the  Ameri- 


OF    ADDISON    COFFIN,  385 

cau  part  of  the  drunkard  sliouid  be  put  oti'  the  train, 
stating  that  any  claim  Finland  had  on  him  1  did  not 
wish  to  antagonize,  but  1  had  an  interest  in  the  Ameri- 
can part.  The  result  was  that  he  was  put  oti'  at  the 
next  station  amid  a  storm  of  Swedish  and  American 
profanity.  I  subsequently  learned  that  but  for  his 
claim  to  American  citizenship  1  might  have  been  in- 
terviewed by  Russian  police  for  a  reason  for  such  an  as- 
sumption of  authority.  We  stayed  a  few  hours  at  Vi- 
borg,  a  small  city  at  the  great  outlet  of  the  lake  system 
into  the  Baltic  sea.  There  the  amount  of  lumber  and 
railroad  ties  was  beyond  credibility  to  those  not  fa- 
miliar with  the  business.  Here  also  is  the  future 
fashionable  tourist's  resort,  especially  for  those  who 
delight  in  yachting.  A  line  of  water  communication 
through  lakes  and  rivers  of  many  hundreds  of  miles 
reaches  far  into  the  pine  forests  of  the  interior,  amid 
scenes  of  wild  romantic  solitude,  little  dreamed  of  by 
the  outside  world.  In  the  near  future  a  line  of  steam 
or  electric  yachts  will  open  this  wonderful  land  to  the 
astonished  and  delighted  fashionable  world. 

We  amved  at  St.  Petei-sburg  at  11  a.  m.  and 
found  much  confusion  at  the  station  by  the  arriving 
and  de])arting  of  detachments  of  soldiers  who  were* 
being  transferred  to  various  points.  We  were  so  en- 
tertained and  amused  with  the  novel  and  strange 
things  around  us  that  we  failed  to  look  for  the  English 


386  LIFE   AND   TRAVELS 

speaker  before  he  left,  and  we  had  some  trouble  in 
finding  the  American  consul,  but  linally  we  reached 
his  office  and  were  soon  equipped  for  a  tour  of  the 
great  city.  It  would  take  many  weeks  to  explore 
and  understand  the  Russian  capital,  and  much  paper 
to  write  a  description  of  it,  for  St.  Petersburg  is  like 
Cairo  and  Constantinople,  different  from  all  other 
cities.  It  has  peculiar  characteristics,  and  in  its 
streets  we  saw  many  types  of  humanity  as  well  as 
nationalities.  The  city  is  a  wonder  to  all  intelligent 
people,  and  especially  to  those  who  have  read  and 
been  interested  in  Peter  the  Great  and  Queen  Cath- 
erine. The  wide,  clean  streets,  splendid  palaces  and 
public  buildings,  the  shops,  markets,  parks,  and  long- 
shaded  avenues  make  it  the  equal  of  any  city  outside 
of  London.  In  walking  and  riding  through  its  streets 
everything  called  to  mind  the  genius,  sagacity  and  de- 
votion of  its  noble  founder.  It  was  with  feelings  al- 
most reverent  that  I  stood  beside  the  little  boat  he  built 
with  his  OAvn  hands  when  he  first  came  to  found  the 
city,  and  I  had  a  similar  feeling  w^hen  looking  at  the 
small  yellow  house  he  built  for  his  home,  now  become 
sacred,  and  later  on,  when  in  the  hall  of  the  Golden 
('hariots,  there  was  nothing  so  interesting  as  the  rough 
two-horse  sleie-h  built  by  the  great  man.  The  print  of 
his  hammer  on  the  braces,  nail  heads  and  bolts  claimed 
my  attention  more  than  the  Russian  art  of  today.     As 


OF    ADDISON    COFFIN.  387 

we  went  through  the  museums,  art  galleries  and  halls 
of  other  collections  we  saw  the  rude  weapons  of  de- 
fense and  domestic  use  in  the  past,  alongside  the  re- 
sults of  recent  discovery  and  invention.  The  finest 
native  productions  in  the  art  galleries  are  placed  be- 
side the  old  barbaric  ideals  during  the  grand  old  runic 
ages,  when  mythic  sagas  had  such  power  over  the  un- 
tutored race.  Ever^^vhere  we  saw  the  evidence  of  the 
napid  uplifting  of  a  w^hole  race  (Moscovite)  from 
degradation  to  the  higher  standard  of  civilization,  re- 
finement and  powerful  nationality. 

One  of  the  most  surprising  things  in  the  city  is 
the  hall  of  the  Golden  Chariot,  a  thing  almost  un- 
known to  the  world.  When  a  new  emperor  is  crowned 
a  ver>'  beautiful  chariot  is  made,  overlaid  with  gold 
and  adorned  with  precious  stones,  with  all  the  art 
known  to  the  mechanics  up  to  that  date.  The  chanot 
is  drawn  by  four  white  horses  almost  covered  with 
gold  plated  harness  and  trappings.  It  is  driven  to  the 
home  of  the  prince,  and  from  there  he  is  taken  to  the 
grand  cathedral,  where  he  is  crowned,  from  thence  he 
is  driven  to  the  palace.  The  chariot  then  takes  its 
place  in  the  hall  and  is  never  heard  of  again.  The 
harness  is  hune'  up  in  an  adjoining  hall,  mth  the  many 
presents  sent  by  chiefs  of  distant  tribes,  governors  of 
provinces,  noblemen,  cities  and  foreigners.  In  no 
other  place  did  we  see,  in  so  small  a  space,  the  widely 


388  LIFE    AND    TRAVELS 

varied  tastes,  ideas  standard  of  eivilizatiun  of  the  dif- 
ferent portions  of  the  vast  empire  than  among  the 
presents  sent  to  these  emperors;  as  to  the  chariots,  no 
two  were  ahke  in  style.  As  we  stood  in  these  long 
halls  it  seemed  more  like  a  fairy  dream  than  a  reality, 
if  we  leave  out  the  question  of  utility;  those  chariots 
were  the  most  beautiful  things  in  Europe.  They  are 
about  forty  in  number.  Standing  in  its  place  just 
where  it  was  left  after  the  explosion  is  the  shattered 
chariot  in  which  the  Emperor  Alexander  was  killed. 

While  in  St.  Petersburg  we  learned  some  very 
valuable  facts,  which  were  fully  conhrmed  in  after 
joui-neys.  If  we  have  read  history  fifty  years  ago,  and 
compare  it^  teaching  with  facts  as  found  today,  it 
sometimes  seems  v^ery  contradictory.  Citie^s  of  that 
date  on  one  side  of  the  river  are  today  only  suburbs  to 
the  railroad  city  on  the  other  side.  Beautiful  things 
described  in  the  books  as  being  on  the  roadside  are  now 
miles  away  ''on  the  old  road"  scarcely  known.  Much 
as  it  is  at  home  when  we  compare  thoughts,  facts  and 
figures.  The  Yankee  of  Xew  England,  the  fire  eater 
of  South  Carolina,  the  man  of  honor  from  Kentucky 
are  known  no  more.  American  covers  all.  Talk  to 
the  young  generation  of  Europe  about  Yankees,  and 
they  will  associate  the  name  with  some  place  in  China; 
talk  of  Kentuckians,  and  they  try  to  place  them  in 
Xent  county,  England;  speak  of  fire  eaters,  and  they 


OF   ADDISON    COFFIN.  389 

think  of  the  tire  worshipers  of  Persia.  So  1  lind  some- 
thing to  learn  everyday,  and  when  and  where  least  ex- 
pected the  facts  are  most  startling,  things  that  shake 
our  faith  in  historians  and  learned  scientists. 

St.  Petersburg  has  nearly  one  million  inhabit- 
ants, and  is  making  greater  progress  than  any  other 
lai'ge  city  in  Europe,  or  western  Asia.  Like  many  other 
commercial  cities  of  the  north,  it  is  built  on  piling 
driven  from  12  to  80  feet  in  the  marshy  soil,  yet 
no  one  would  think  in  riding  through  its  long  streets 
and  looking  at  its  massive  buildings,  that  it  was  stand- 
ing where  there  was  once  a  swamp.  JSTor  is  it  an  easy 
matter  to  realize  that  it  has  been  built  up  by  a  people 
who  have  come  up  from  barbarism  in  two  hundre<l 
years  by  their  own  efforts. 

We  started  from  St.  Petersburg  for  Moscow,  the 
sacred  city  of  the  Russians,  at  -^  p.  m.,  June  28th,  and 
that  night  there  was  one  hour  I  could  not  see  to  read 
distinctly,  though  it  was  quite  light  enough  for  walk- 
ing about.  We  had  traveled  two  thousand  miles  in 
continuous  daylight,  from  Stockholm  to  Haparanda, 
thence  to  St.  Petersburg,  and  now  the  road  to  Moscow 
was  taking  us  out  of  the  daylight  region,  and  the  first 
real  darkness  was  refreshing.  Our  route  ran  through 
an  extended  plain  that  surrounds  the  Baltic  sea,  and 
its  connecting  waters.  We  had  pictured  in  our  minds 
a  dark  and  rough  looking  country,  when  we  entered 

25 


390  LIFE    AND    TRAVELS 

Russia,  but  we  found  it  quite  the  contrary.  The  vast 
forests  of  hemlock,  pine  and  bii^ch  were  more  grand 
and  beautiful,  if  possible,  than  in  Finland,  and  to  our 
astonishment,  the  lumber  yards  and  Hoating  rafts  were 
as  large  as  any  we  had  seen.  The  open  land  reminded 
me  of  the  great  prairies  of  oui-  fai-  west;  it  was  rich 
and  capable  of  supporting  an  immense  population,  if 
properly  cultivated,  but  the  lack  is  just  here,  excepting 
around  some  enterprising  nobleman's  residence,  wiiere 
the  whole  country  is  so  improved  that  it  seems  like  a 
broad  held  of  sunlight  amid  darkness.  The  hamlets  of 
the  peasantis  look  very  dirty  and  repulsive,  while  the 
people  ai'e  the  picture  of  extreme  degradation  and 
neglect,  though  they  all  look  as  though  they  had 
enough  of  rough  food,  still  it  hurt  me  to  look  into  the 
faces  of  the  women  and  children,  they  appeared  so 
hopelessly  and  helplessly  low  in  the  social  scale. 
Though  the  men  were  far  from  clean  and  most  un- 
kempt, they  were  well  built  and  strong.  It  was  re- 
freshing to  know  that  these  were  representatives  of  all 
Russians  of  two  hundred  years  ago,  and  that  the  pres- 
ent higher  type  had  evolved  from  this  unpromising 
state.  Therefore,  the  possibilities  are  unlimited  for 
the  next  two  centuries.  Most  of  the  distance  of  the 
five  hundred  miles  to  Moscow  was  comparatively  level 
country.  The  first  two  hundred  was  through  the 
-southern  limits  of  the  vast  pine  forest  that  extends  to 


OF    ADDISON    COFFIN.  391 

the  Arctic  ocean,  and  will  furnish  an  inexhaustible 
lumber  supply  to  Russia,  when  she  has  200,000,000 
inhabitants  living  between  St.  Petersburg  and  Olu- 
lorshio. 

Moscow  is  a  beautiful  modern  city.  From  the 
ashes  of  its  burning  by  the  French  in  1812  it  has 
grown  until  it  now  has  nearly  a  million  people,  and  it 
is  held  in  high  reverence  by  orthodox  Russians. 
Many  priceless  relics,  in  the  form  of  Saga  legends, 
and  runic  traditions,  perished  in  the  conflagration,  but 
the  patriotism  of  the  people  is  making  great  efforts  to 
restore  the  loss  as  far  as  possible.  In  building  tasty 
and  handsome  churches  they  have  made  a  success,  nor 
are  their  broad,  park-like  avenues  excelled  by  any 
other  city.  The  average  tourist  is  charmed  with  what 
he  sees,  the  rides  along  the  clean  streets  are  most  en- 
joyable, the  museums  and  other  public  buildings  are 
large,  stately  edifices,  displaying  much  taste  and  archi- 
tectural originality,  showing  the  natural  ability  of  the 
Muscovites;  while  others  sought  their  favorite  amuse- 
ments I  wanted  to  see  the  grand  old  bell  whose  voice 
was  hushed  in  1812.  I  found  it  in  a  small  open  space 
near  where  it  fell  when  the  tower  was  burned.  It  rests 
on  a  granite  block  about  three  feet  high,  and  the  huge 
clapper  lies  on  the  ground  under  it,  the  large  fragment 
broken  out  is  leaning  against  a  block  of  stone.  As  I 
•walked  around  it  to  more  fully  comprehend  its  ira- 


892  LIFE    AND    TRAVELS 

mense  size,  22  feet  liigli  and  21  feet  in  diametei, 
weigliing  219  tons,  its  wonderful  history,  and  the 
strange  and  temble  events  that  have  ti*anspired  since 
it  first  pealed  out  its  thunder  tones  came  to  my  mem- 
ory, and  the  fearful  scenes  of  war,  blood  and  desola- 
tion, which  Europe  has  witnessed,  passed  in  review 
with  startling  vividness.  To  see  the  bell  was  one  of 
the  ideals  of  early  life,  and  when  I  stood  by  it  in  old 
age,  I  thanked  the  Lord  for  that  as  well  as  many  other 
achievements  that  once  seemed  so  far  away  and  well 
nigh  hopeless.  After  having  seen  the  bell  I  had  little 
interest  in  other  things  in  the  city.  The  lesson  learned 
of  Muscovite  character  was  similar  to  that  of  the  Hun, 
they  are  strangers  in  Europe,  but  have  no  ancestral 
connections  left  in  Asia,  and  are  lone  races  among  the 
nations  of  the  earth.  Say  what  we  may  of  Russia  and 
her  }>eople,  there  ig  an  internal  potency  capable  of 
maKmg  a  wonderful  nation  in  defiance  of  opposing 
forces.  Like  the  United  States,  there  are  unlimited  re- 
sources within  the  bounds  of  the  empire  to  make  a  na- 
tion in  spite  of  the  outside  world. 

From  Moscow  we  made  a  long  run  to  Warsaw  in 
Poland  through  the  same  level  prairie-looking  country, 
with  much  uncultivated  land  and  many  ugly  villages, 
as  on  the  other  route,  though  the  cultivated  areas  were 
more  frerpient  and  larger,  showing  a  steady  advance  in 
refinement.     Sometimes  portions  of  the  forest  would 


OF    ADDISON    COFFIN.  393 

come  in  view,  and  then,  on  the  other  hand,  glimpses 
of  the  plains  of  southern  Kussia,  terminating  in  Hun- 
gary, were  seen  from  the  great  land  swells,  giving  in- 
terest to  the  entire  journey.  As  we  went  farther  west- 
ward, the  larger  towns  sh<nved  contact  with  other  than 
Kussian  civilization,  there  was  a  mingling  of  people, 
costumes  and  habits  of  life  until  we  crossed  into  Pol- 
and, then  everything  changed.  Fine  fields  of  grain 
were  on  every  side,  with  meadow  land  in  the  valleys^ 
and  cattle  grazing  on  the  hills,  the  villages  and  fann- 
houses  were  bright  and  clean,  all  bore  the  mark  of 
happy  home  life.  This  sudden  transition  out  of  gloom 
into  sunshine  w^as  charming  and  refreshing,  especiallj"^ 
when  we  had  been  under  a  certain  half-defined  re- 
straint. As  we  went  forward  all  things  seemed  to  grow 
brighter.  The  rye  fields  were  ripe  unto  harvest,  and 
the  first  shocks  of  ripe  grain  were  seen  in  northern 
Poland  with  other  vegetation  well  advanced,  for  it  was 
on  the  border  land  between  the  long  day  and  long 
night.  It  will  be  in  place  to  say  here  that  in  three 
hours  after  we  left  St.  Petersburg,  I  perceived  that  ix 
detective  was  detailed  to  keep  an  eye  on  us  wherever 
we  should  go.  He  was  faithful  to  his  charge,  though 
he  \yas  ignorant  of  my  knowledge  of  his  business.  In- 
stead of  being  annoyed  by  his  espionage,  I  was  glad 
and  felt  safe  from  personal  danger,  for  so  long  as  he 
saw  no  harm  in  us,  he  would  keep  us  from  harm. 
After  crossing  into  Poland  I  recognized  him  by  signs 


39i  LIFE    AND    TRAVELS 

and  gave  kLm  to  understand  that  we  appreciated  his 
watchful  care  over  us.  He  was  completely  taken  bj 
surprise,  and  by  look  and  action  showed  his  astonish- 
ment. He  and  tiie  conductor  had  an  earnest  and  ani- 
mated talk,  and  then  he  disappeared  and  was  seen  no 
more. 

We  made  a  short  stop  in  Warsaw,  which  is  an 
historic  place.  Few  cities  in  Europe  have  as  thrilling 
history,  both  in  the  past  and  more  recent  times.  Few 
have  seen  more  siege*,  sackings  and  massacres,  and  few 
have  produced  such  men  as  John  Sobieski  and  Kos- 
ciusko. The  Poles  are  identical  in  race  with  the  Fins, 
Swedes,  Danes  and  all  Scandinavians.  The  first  thing 
a  Polish  mother  teaches  her  child  is  to  hate  Russia 
with  perfect  hatred.  Xame  Russia  to  a  Polish  man, 
and  he  instantly  frowns  and  looks  cross,  but  is  silent, 
but  the  women  utter  a  low,  but  fierce  imprecation 
with  flashing  eyes.  The  patriotism  oi  the  }3eople  of 
Warsaw  is  so  strong  that  they  keep  the  palace  of  Kos- 
ciusko in  order  and  just  as  he  left  it  the  morning  he 
went  forth  to  his  last  battlefield  in  defense  of  Polish 
liberty.  Americans  will  catch  the  fire  if  they  remain 
long  enough  in  the  city. 

From  Warsaw  we  ran  north  to  intercept  the  great 
railway  line  from  St.  Petersburg,  and  then  turned 
southw^estward  to  Berlin,  where  we  arrived  the  after- 
noon of  July  3d  full  of  new  thoughts,  new  knowledge 


OF    ADDISON   COFFIN.  395 

and  new  ideas  of  humanity.  There  we  found  welcome 
letters  from  home  and  friends  forwarded  by  Cook  & 
Son  from  London.  We  celebrated  the  Fourth  of  Julv 
in  Berlin  in  riding  on  the  street  cars  and  in  omnibuses 
and  suburban  railways,  making  not  less  than  one  hun- 
dred miles  of  travel,  mth  several  miles  of  walking. 
To  attempt  to  descril>e  the  city  in  detail  would  be  as 
difficult  as  to  tell  of  London,  for  it  is  the  second  city 
in  interest  in  Europe  with  its  museums,  libraries,  art 
galleries,  zoological  collections,  parks,  gardens,  halls, 
palaces,  churches  and  marks  of  older  and  stormier 
day?.  Like  London  and  other  great  cities,  Berlin  has 
its  local  scenes  of  extreme  misery,  want,  degradation, 
sin  and  shame.  A  walk  among  them  makes  the  heart, 
soul  and  stomach  sick,  and  the  eyes  dim  with  tears,  for 
which  there  is  no  help.  We  spent  the  5th  and  6th  in 
constant  Avalking  and  riding.  An  especially  enjoyable 
walk  was  ''Tender  the  Lindens,"  and  to  the  play- 
ground, where  hundreds  of  small  children  are  taken 
out  to  play  in  heaps  of  sand  and  piles  of  mortar,  out  of 
which  they  make  mud  pies,  etc.  We  occasionally 
varied  the  scene  by  ascending  towers,  spires  and  high 
places  to  get  a  view  of  the  magnificent  surroundings. 
There  is  one  striking  difference  between  the  "peo- 
ple of  London  and  those  of  Berlin ;  in  the  former,  it  is 
possible  to  reason  with  a  man,  and  he  will  give  you  a 
respectful  hearing  and  accept  your  views  if  they  be 


396  LIFE    AND    TRAVELS 

good  and  true,  but  it  is  just  the  reverse  with  a  BerHner. 
He  is  proof  against  anything  not  German.  The  only 
way  to  change  him  is  to  alter  the  composition  of  his 
beer. 

From  Berlin  we  started  south  to  Venice  in  Italy, 
crossing  Europe  from  north  to  south.  We  chose  an 
unused,  or  unpopular  route  not  laid  down  in  the  guide 
books;  it  was  by  way  of  Dresden,  iSTuremberg  and 
Munich,  through  one  of  the  finest  agricultural  sec- 
tions in  Europe.  Harvest  was  in  full  tide,  the  whole 
journey  across  the  plains,  until  we  reached  the  Alps, 
was  one  continued  scene  of  activity.  Thousands  of 
people  were  in  the  fields  cutting  the  grain,  grass, 
hoeing  the  sugar  beet  fields,  weeding  and  cultivating 
the  Irish  potato,  working  in  the  market  gardens,  pull- 
ing the  flax,  gathering  the  mulberry  leaves  to  feed  the 
silk  worms,  or  in  the  vineyards  among  the  vines.  In 
one  market  garden  I  counted  one  hundred  women  and 
girls  in  nearly  a  straight  line  hoeing  vegetables.  It 
was  a  beautiful  sight,  though  a  shade  of  sadness 
crossed  the  picture,  for  here,  as  in  all  Europe,  the  old 
men,  the  women  and  children  have  to  bear  the  crush- 
ing burden  of  supporting  hundreds  of  thousands  of 
idle  young  men,  who  are  compelled  to  serve  in  the 
standing  armies. 

Sometimes  the  railroad  ascended  long  swells  in 
the   rolling  plain.      From   these  summits  the  scenes 


OF    ADDISON    COFFIN.  397 

were  grand  beyond  description.  Often  it  was  like  a 
vast  expanse  of  patchwork  in  brilliant  colors,  with  end- 
less variety.  Sometimes  miles  away  there  would  be  a 
parallel  swell  in  the  country,  while  all  the  intervening 
lowland  was  visible  to  the  eye.  One  never  grew  weary 
of  gazing  on  this  enchanting  picture,  and  to  crown  all 
there  were  the  magnificent  highw^ays  distinctly  out- 
lined across  the  rural  map^  by  their  white  .o^raveled  and 
stone-paved  beds,  many  times  bordered  with  long  lines- 
of  beautiful  trees.  At  one  time  the  sublimity  was 
intensified  by  the  shadow  of  a  summer  cloud,  slowly 
floating  over  the  vast  expanse  with  its  outlines  sharply 
defined.  We  purposely  traveled  on  the  slowest  trains, 
r  before  stated,  so  that  we  could  look  down  into  the 
little  gardens  and  fields  by  the  wayside  and  catch  u 
glimpse  of  the  domestic  life  among  the  people.  The 
children  everywhere  were  doing  service  according  t^ 
their  strength;  in  some  places  the  larger  ones  had 
charge  of  the  smaller  ones  out  under  the  trees,  others 
were  carrying  water  in  jugs  t^o  the  laborers  in  the  fields, 
or  they  were  watching  the  docile  cows  and  milk  goats 
by  the  side  of  the  railroads  and  highways.  One  place 
a  boy  in  charge  of  a  cow  had  gone  to  sleep  and  the 
cow  was  standing  with  her  head  over  the  little  sleeper 
keeping  ■  guard :  in  another  place  two  girls  were  in 
charge  of  some  milking  goats;  the  smaller  girl  fell  and 
\^as  hurt  and  began  to  cry,  instantly  the  mother  goat 


398  LIFE    AND    TRAVELS 

ran  U»  tier  and  licked  her  hands  and  bleated  as  to  her 
kids;  when  all  was  well  again  the  goat  went  back  to 
grazingj  but  looked  back  twice  to  make  sure  all  was 
safe.  Still  another  time  a  small  boy  was  holding  a 
cow  close  to  the  railroad,  and  was  so  interested  in  the 
approaching  train  that  he  forgot  his  charge,  but  the 
motherly  cow-  began  pulling  and  gently  pushing  the 
boy  out  of  danger.  The  passengers  seeing  this  un- 
usual act  involuntarily  cheered.  In  an  instant  the 
cow  gave  a  bellow^  of  defiance  and  sprang  between  the 
boy  and  the  train  and  braced  herself  for  a  battle.  This 
was  such  unmistakable  instinct,  connected  with  in- 
telligence, that  it  drew  forth  much  discussion  among 
half  a  dozen  nationalities  aboard  the  train.  To  me 
it  was  an  additional  item  in  my  philosophy,  that  mind 
is  not  confined  to  man  alone. 

AVe  crossed  our  route  from  Constantinople  at 
Nuremberg,  but  did  not  stop,  as  it  was  day  time  w^hen 
we  passed  and  had  made  a  visit  there,  but  w^e  stopped 
off  at  the  celebrated  old  city  of  Munich,  with  its  almost 
fabulous  scenes  of  the  days  of  war  and  chivalry.  The 
Tyrolese  Alps  were  a  disappointment  wdien  we 
actually  came  in  contact  with  them.  They  are  not 
superior  to  the  mountains  of  West  Virginia,  and  not 
nearly  so  extensive  or  rugged.  There  is  w^ilder  and 
more  beautiful  scenery  on  the  Kanawha  river  than 
any  we  saw  among  the  Alps,  leaving  out  Mt.  Blanc 
and  its  neighborhood. 


OF    ADDISON    COFFIN. 


399 


It  was  July,  and   the   summits   of  the  mountains 
were  still  covered  with  snow,  and  they  were  frequently 
in  sight  for  several  days  as  we  went  west  from  Con- 
stantinople, and  this  view  of  them  made  them  very 
imposing,  but  afterwards  when  we  saw  them  covered 
with  green  forests,  or  cultivated  to  their  tops  the  whole 
Bcene  was  changed ;  their  snow-clad  grandeur  was  gone, 
and  they  were  as  Pennsylvania.  Virginia,  or  North 
Carolina  mountains,  when  measured  with  the  great 
ranges  of  the  world.     The  false  idea  we  get  of  the 
Alps  comes  from  English  writers,  who  have  not  seen 
other  mountains,  and  from  Americans  who  have  but 
little  knowledge    of  our    country.      I  cannot  under- 
stand how  one  who  has  seen  the  mountain  ranges  of 
the  western  half  of  our  continent  can  see  anything 
but  beautiful  foot  hills  in  the  Alps. 

In  the  summer  of  1893  I  met  an  Englishman 
with  his  family  at  Victoria,  British  Cokimbia,  who 
was  making  a  tour  of  the  continent.  He  had  landed  at 
Quebec  and  crossed  by  way  of  the  Canadian  Pacific 
railroad.  He  had  never  before  been  out  of  England  or 
Scotland,  had  seen  no  mountains  until  he  came  to  the 
Kockies,  w^hen  he  became  highly  excited  over  what 
he  saw.  But  when  he  passed  through  the  unsurpassed 
grandeur  of  the  Frazier  river  mountains  he  completely 
lost  his  head.  When  he  found  that  I  had  some  knowl- 
edge of  such  scenes  he  delivered  himself  about  in  this 


400  LIFE    AND    TRAVELS 

vvay :  ''Take  the  biggest  liar  that  ever  lived,  a  perfect 
Ananias,  give  him  the  eloquence  of  the  ages  from 
Demosthenes  to  Gladstone,  till  him  with  the  inspiring 
influence  of  imaginative  poetry,  from  Homer  down  to 
Whittier,  then  blindfold  him  so  that  he  need  not  blush 
at  his  extravagance,  and  bid  him  deliver  himself  of  all 
this  combination  of  ability  in  describing  that  scenery, 
and  the  half  will  not  be  told."  Then  he  clapped  his 
hands  in  an  ecstasy  of  enthusiasm.  I  told  him  there 
was  but  one  grander  thing  to  be  seen  on  earth,  a  first- 
class  storm  at  sea,  and  with  increased  ardor  he  ex- 
claimed, ""May  the  Lord  send  it."  At  this  point  his 
tine,  intelligent  wife  and  daughter  interfered  and 
toned  him  down  to  more  practical  things.  This  Eng- 
lishman was  one  of  the  kind  who  unwittingly  convey 
false  ideas  of  places  and  things,  for  let  them  see  ever 
so  much  in  after  times,  there  will  be  nothing  equal  to 
the  Frazier  river  region. 

We  had  left  the  Alps  in  the  b<x^ks  go,  and  re- 
member them  as  we  saw  them,  small  but  beautiful 
mountains.  When  Ave  descended  to  the  plains  of  Italy, 
we  were  struck  with  the  contrast  between  the  extremes 
of  Europe,  Finland  and  Italy.  In  Finland  we  saw 
stalwart,  brave,  kindly,  noble  looking  men,  and  beau- 
tiful, strong,  healthy,  motherly  looking  women,  who 
seemed  to  bear  their  portion  and  enjoy  life.  In  Italy 
it  was  the  reverse,  and  in  some  instances  the  contrast 


OF    ADDISON    COFFIN.  401 

was  nut  only  painful,  but  revolting,  especially  with 
the  women.  Sometimes  when  we  were  walking  in 
flower  gardens,  delighted  with  the  surroundings,  some 
woman  watering,  training  and  cultivating  the  scented 
flowers  and  plants  would  raise  her  head  for  a  moment, 
and  show  a  face  so  haggard,  sad,  sorrowful  and  de- 
spairing, out  of  which  all  joy,  all  hope  and  aspirations 
were  gone  and  gone  forever,  that  we  instinctively 
gazed  at  her  with  pity  and  horror,  and  that  face  re- 
mained in  the  memory,  when  the  flowers  were  for- 
gotten. So  it  is  everywhere  as  you  go  out  into  the 
highways  and  byways,  while  walking  upon  the  marble 
floors  and  thronging  the  great  halls  of  wealth  and 
pride,  those  sad,  sorrowful  despairing  faces  will  be 
raised  toward  you  from  their  menial,  unwomanly  la- 
bor, and  those  hopeless  eyes  will  look  appealingly  into 
yours.  This  is  the  sad  side  of  life  of  more  than  half  the 
women  of  Italy,  and  as  to  the  men,  you  only  have  to 
jro  out  on  the  streets  of  our  cities  and  look  at  the  lowest 
types  you  can  find,  and  then  imagine  men  three  de- 
grees lower,  and  you  have  an  idea  of  the  condition  of 
tens  of  thousands  of  Italian  men. 

This  contrast  was  not  confined  to  the  people 
alone.  In  Italy  every  available  square  yard  is  under 
cultivation,  and  much  of  it  has  been  for  3000  years, 
while  in  the  north  country  less  than  half  is  cultivated. 
The  semi-tropical  fruits  and  flowers  and  the  totally 


402  LIFE    AND    TRAVELS 

different  climate  from  the  north,  made  this  second 
visit  to  Italy  more  enjoyable.  All  the  way  from 
Berlin  harvesting  was  actively  on,  and  in  [N'orthern 
Italy  wheat  and  rye  threshing  had  begun;  we  were 
surprised  to  see  several  American  traction  engines 
and  separators  at  work.  It  made  me  think  of  home 
work  to  see  familiar  machinery  in  a  foreign  land,  sur- 
rounded and  managed  by  another  race  of  people,  but 
there  was  this  difference  in  results — there  was  no  waste 
of  grain  or  straw.  The  latter  in  particular  was  stacked 
in  the  most  neat  and  artistic  as  well  as  scientihc  style. 
The  stacks  were  the  shape  of  an  egg,  with  the  little 
•end  down,  and  combed  smooth;  there  was  not  even 
one  loose  straw,  and  it  seemed  as  if  not  one  was  lost, 
I  was  surprised  to  see  more  machinery  used  on  the 
fai-ms  of  [N'orway,  Sweden,  Finland,  Austria  and 
l^orthem  Italy,  than  in  all  Europe  outside  of  Eng- 
land. Across  Central  Europe  the  grain  was  cut  by 
hand:  in  many  places  by  the  old  primitive  reaping 
hook  or  sickle.  Everywhere  women  and  girls  were 
I)inding  grain  sheaves,  sometimes  middle-aged  women 
were  using  the  sickle,  but  nowhere  the  scythe.  In 
many  places  the  grass  was  all  bound  into  bundles 
and  stood  up  to  cure;  this  was  the  work  of  the  women 
and  girls.  It  was  quite  common  in  Germany,  Aus- 
tria and  France,  where  they  cure  hay  in  the  same 
w^ay  we  do,  to  see  a  woman  pitching  the  hay  on  to 


OF    ADDISON    COFFIN.  403 

a  cai't,  with  a  girl  loading,  while  the  men  were  mow- 
ing and  raking.  Oftentimes  in  Italy  and  France 
women  were  on  the  stacks  shaping  and  building, 
while  the  men  were  pitching  up  to  them;  the  finished 
stacks  were  so  beautiful  that  it  showed  they  were 
very  expert.  In  Southern  Europe  the  stacks  were 
nearly  all  the  same  size,  about  one  good,  two-hor-se, 
American  load. 

My  friend,  J.  V.  Lindley,  being  an  extensive  nur- 
sery and  fruit  man,  had  an  eye  for  fruits  and  flowerSj 
so  we  always  found  something  interesting  where  there 
was  ground  and  humanity;  he  saw  the  fruit  and 
flowers,  and  I  the  people  who  cultivated  them.  When 
in  the  grain  fields  and  meadows  we  could  jointly  call 
to  mind  when  we  were  boys  engaged  in  the  same 
business  and  with  similar  iniplement.s,  and  in  addi- 
tion we  astonished  the  natives  with  our  skill  and 
knowledge  of  their  tools,  but  we  soon  learned  not  to 
stay  longer  in  one  place  than  we  were  popular. 

We  found  so  nmch  that  was  new  in  Italy,  that 
it  is  difficult  to  give  brief  outlines  where  all  wan 
so  interesting.  Our  objective  point  was  Venice, 
where  we  arrived  July  9th,  1892,  just  five  months 
from  the  time  we  left  Guilford  College,  N'orth  Caro- 
lina, and  about  seven  months  after  I  left  my  home 
in  Indiana,  and  to  me  it  was  another  ideal  realized. 
In  early  life  the  history  of  Venice  had   a  peculiar 


404  3.1FE    AND    TRAVELS 

fascination:  now  the  fact  that  I  actually  stood  in  the 
square  of  St.  Mark  filled  nie  with  a  thrill  of  joy  and 
a  secret  feeling  of  triumph,  as  on  similar  occasions. 
Here  was  another,  once  hopeless,  desired  attained,  and 
I  still  possessed  mind  and  strength  to  appreciate  the 
achievement. 

The  city,  as  seen  by  those  who  know  not  its  origin 
and  stormy  history,  is  a  thing  of  beauty  and  delight; 
but  Venice,  as  seen  now^  by  the  historian,  is  a  lovely 
ruin,  slowly  sinking  out  of  sight.  On  every  palace, 
church  and  tower  is  written  neglect,  decline  and  ruin; 
there  is  scarcely  a  trace  left  cvf  its  mendian  gTandeur. 
Wben  I  stood  on  the  great  tower  of  St.  Mark  and 
looked  out  where  once  a  thousand  ships  rode  at  anchor 
in  the  great  harbor,  there  was  nothing  but  a  mud  flat, 
without  a  man  or  boat  in  sight,  and  I  looked  down  in 
the  city  for  the  splendid  palaces  that  ^\ere  so  famous 
centuries  ago,  but  they  were  gone,  or  now  dark  and 
sea-stained  and  falling  into  decay.  The  lion  of  St. 
Mark  was  much  disfigured;  the  four  brazen  horses 
that  once  sho^^^l  like  a  flame  of  fire  were  nisty  and  ray- 
less;  the  cathedral  of  the  patron  saint  was  rapidly 
sinking  into  decay;  the  once  unrivalled  stained  glass 
windows  w^ere  dingy  with  accumulating  dust;  there 
were  no  longer  hands  of  willing  devotees  to  cleanse 
and  y)urify  its  sacred  interior,  once  the  city's  pride 
and  boast.     The  people  have  lost  every  trace  of  Ye- 


OF    ADDISON    COFFIN.  405 

iietian  character  of  the  pa^^t,  save  their  murderous 
vindictiveness,  which  happily  is  kept  in  check  by 
the  strong  arm  of  united  Italy. 

We  took  a  long  ride  in  a  gondola  through  the 
most  popular  portion  of  the  city,  along  the  great  canal, 
down  the  Kialto,  under  the  Bridge  of  Sighs  and 
other  celebrated  bridges,  then  to  see  the  other  side 
of  the  whited  picture  we  took  a  ride  among  the  back 
canals  and  by-ways;  we  thus  found  the  city  might  still 
be  classed  among  the  novelties  of  Europe.  In  one 
place  we  saw  a  mother  teaching  a  six-year-old  boy 
to  swim;  she  stood  on  the  lower  step  at  the  water's 
edge.  She  had  a  rope  ten  feet  long  around  the  child ; 
he  would  run  down  three  or  four  steps,  jump  out  as 
far  as  he  could,  then  go  down  feet  foremost  out  of 
sight,  come  up  kicking,  splashing  and  laughing,  while 
his  mother  pulled  him  ashore,  and  the  same  thing 
was  repeated  until  he  learned  to  come  ashore  with- 
out help,  and  gradually  became  a  young  duck  in  the 
water.  A  short  distance  farther  on  two  ladies  were 
teaching  some  little  girls  in  the  same  way;  we  were 
told  that  every  child  in  the  city  is  taught  to  swim 
at  an  early  age.  AVe  passed  two  men  who  were  bath- 
ing in  the  canal  where  it  was  not  twenty  feet  wide, 
and  right  before  the  water  front  of  other  houses;  no 
one  l)ut  ourselves  appeared  to  be  annoyed  with  it, 
and  the  men  appeared  to  be  orderly  and  quiet.     We 

26 


406  LIFE    AND    TRAVELS 

encountered  other  sights,  sound  and  smells  that  shall 
be  unmentionable;  these  like  bathing  seemed  to  be 
the  established  custom.  Those  who  do  not  wish  to 
see  this  side  of  Venice  would  better  keep  in  the  pop- 
\ilar  highways,  but  to  me  the  dark  side  was  the  most 
instructive,  for  when  we  rejoined  the  companies  of 
tourists  at  evening  time  to  rehearse  the  events  of 
the  day,  not  one  had  seen  any  of  the  small  things 
that  in  the  end  become  the  more  interesting. 
On  one  occasion  I  happened  to  refer  to  the  decayed 
condition  of  the  piling  at  the  water  line  under  one 
of  the  palaces,  and  not  one  of  the  party  had  ever 
known  that  the  city  was  all  built  on  piling,  and  that 
every  year  houses  were  taken  down  to  save  the  val- 
uable marble  of  which  they  were  built.  When  a 
north  wind  blows  for  several  hours,  the  water  is  slowly 
driven  out  of  the  Adriatic,  making  a  differenc-e  at 
Venice  of  from  three  to  five  feet.  When  this  hap- 
pens, it  is  a  wonder  to  take  a  boat  ride  in  the  back 
canals  where  the  piling  is  not  hidden  by  casing,  for 
then  and  there  the  true  condition  of  the  city  can 
be  understood  and  its  end  predicted.  Yet  nine  out 
of  ten  tourists  who  ^nsit  Venice  will  remember  it  as 
one  of  the  bright  pictures,  but  the  tenth  will  think 
of  it  as  a  citv  on  which  the  hand  of  retribution  has 
fallen  with  crushing  weight,  and  humanity  will  not 
shed  one  tear  of  pity  when  the  last  stone  sinks  be- 


UF    ADDlbON    COFFIN.  407 

neatli  the  waterb  of  the  sea,  for  her  crimes  have  been 
without  name  and  number. 

We  left  Venice  at  8  a.  m.  one  beautiful  morn- 
ing, and  rolled  slowly  over  the  long  causeway  bridge 
to  the  main  land,  and  were  soon  among  the  orchards 
and  gardens  again.  We  glided  by  palatial  halls  with 
their  wealth  of  flowers,  and  low,  repulsive  hovels, 
where  hunger,  suffering,  sorrow  and  sin  lield  sway. 
We  were  charmed  with  the  high  state  of  cultiva- 
tion witnessed  on  all  sides,  but  saddened  by  the  sight 
of  the  degradation  that  thrust  itself  into  or  across 
every  picture.  Milan  was  our  next  stopping  place; 
its  intimate  connection  with  some  of  the  world's  de- 
cisive events  were  still  fresh  in  my  memory,  but  its 
chief  attraction  was  the  wonderful  cathedral,  which 
has  been  building  six  hundred  years,  and  will  require 
two  hundreds  years  to  finish,  but  when  accomplished 
will  be  the  largest  of  the  kind  ever  built.  The  an- 
nual revenue  on  real  estate  furnishes  the  money  for 
its  erection;  this  is  the  reason  that  it  has  been  so 
many  centuries  in  building.  Three  wings  out  of 
four  are  nearly  completed,  and  one  hundred  towers 
out  of  the  one  hundred  and  forty  contemplated. 
There  is  a  school  for  archite<:'ts  where  young  men 
are  trained  for  life,  so  that  there  will  never  be  a  time 
when  there  will  not  be  one  or  more  architects  who 
will  comprehend  the  whole  plan.  .    Its  architecture  is 


408  LIFE    AND    TRAVELS 

more  complex  than  that  of  aiiv  other  building  con- 
structed by  men;  no  two  things,  no  two  parts,  no 
two  patterns  are  to  be  alike;  eternal  variety  is  the 
rule.  As  we  stood  on  the  central  dome  we  seemed 
to  be  suiTounded  by  a  forest  of  spires,  and  the  roof 
is  truly  a  wonder  in  its  varied  forms,  figures,  colors 
and  designs;  the  great  tlaestones  composing  part  of 
the  roof  are  a  marvel  of  human  ingenuity  and  me- 
chanical ])erfection.  It  is  impossible  for  me  to  give  a 
descri})tion  of  the  l^ewildering  splendor  of  the  in- 
terior, even  in  its  untinished  craidition. 

]Many  relics  of  the  middle  ages  uiake  the  city 
of  Milan  interesting.  In  its  art  galleries  are  numerous 
celebrated  i)ictures,  before  which  lovers  of  art  delight 
to  linger,  and  like  so  many  other  places,  there  are 
rooms  and  sections  that  would  seem  more  a])])ropri- 
ate  at  a  bathing  res(U-t  among  half  civilized  ])eople. 
The  surrounding  country  is  a  delight  to  any  one  who 
is  connected  with  fruit  growing  or  farming,  for  like 
the  cathedral,  there  is  a  variety,  though  here  it  is 
in  products,  appliances,  adapting  means  to  ends,  and 
utilizing  space;  in  no  place  did  we  see  more  trees 
trained  against  walls  and  at  the  ends  of  buildings. 
The  manner  of  treating  and  training  the  vines  in 
vineyards  was,  in  many  cases,  new  and  novel.  The 
mulberry  tree  was  abundant;  gardens  and  small  farms 
were  devoted  to  its  culture  in  Svouthern  France  and 


OF    ADDISON    COFFIN.  409 

parts  of  Spain,  but  nowhere  did  we  see  such  vigor- 
ous growth  as  on  Mount  Lebanon,  in  Syria,  where 
there  wa^  less  care  and  greater  altitude. 

From  Milan  we  went  northward  into  Switzer- 
land, passing  through  St.  Gotiiard  tunnel,  the  second 
longest  in  the  world.  It  was  a  notable  fact  that  we  had 
now  gone  through  the  two  largest  tunnels  and  crossed 
the  two  greatest  railroad  bridges,  had  climbed  the 
great  pyramid,  been  on  the  walls  of  Jerusalem,  on 
the  ruins  of  Baalbec  and  the  Acropolis,  witnessed 
the  midnight  sun,  and  were  still  alive  to  occurences. 
Upon  leaving  St.  Gothard  we  went  through  Lucerne, 
Berne,  etc.,  by  a  rather  circuitous  route  to  Geneva, 
which  we  chose  as  the  better  way  to  see  the  country. 
Instead  of  finding  it  all  a  broken  mountain  region, 
it  was  much  like  Virginia  and  Pennsylvania,  with 
broad  valleys  and  moderately  high  mountains,  entirely 
different  from  the  representation  of  tourists  and  res- 
ident*^' of  cities.  More  than  half  is  available  for  fruit, 
grain  and  grass,  giving  it  quite  an  agricultural  look, 
much  like  other  mountain  districts  in  Europe. 

Geneva  failed  to  fill  the  jjicture,  as  given  by 
enthusiasts;  it  is  inferior  in  many  essential  features 
to  Stockholm,  Sweden.  Instead  of  being  surrounded 
by  giant  mountains,  it  lies  in  a  broad  valley,  on  a 
narrow  lake,  which  is  not  to  be  compared  in  beauty 
to  Puget's  Sound,  Lake  Tahoe  and  a  dozen  other  lakes 


410  LIFE    AND    TRAVELS 

in  our  country.  The  nearest  mountain  is  at  least 
three  miles  away,  and  anywhere  on  the  Pacilic  coast 
would  be  called  a  foothill.  Taken  altogether,  Geneva 
was  a  total  failure  when  compared  to  its  book  repu- 
tation, yet  viewed  simply  upon  its  merits,  its  is  a 
beautiful  city  in  a  bright,  gTeen  valley,  and  in  win- 
ter time,  when  the  mountains  are  clad  in  snow,  would 
be  charming.  The  people  were  far  more  interesiting 
than  the  cities,  lakes  and  mountains,  and  I  soon 
learned  .why  the  Swiss  were  so  brave  and  free.  The 
mothers  are  free,  therefore  the  mothers  of  free  men. 
Every  time  I  met  an  old  grandmother  I  felt  like 
taking  off  my  hat  and  cheering;  though  she  might 
be  old,  gray  and  tottering  as  she  went,  yet  there 
was  that  conscious  light  of  freedom  in  her  eyes  that 
age  could  not  dim.  I  involuntarily  exclaimed:  *'God 
bless  the  mothers  of  Switzerland." 

We  can  make  a  tirst-class  Switzerland  out  of 
part  of  ^ew  York,  Pennsylvania  and  West  Virginia, 
and  another  from  North  Carolina  and  Tennessee,  all 
the  time  leaving  out  the  small  neighborhood  of  Mt. 
Blanc,  and  still  a  third  but  grander  one  can  be  mad'O 
from  the  head  of  the  Missouri  river,  surrounding 
Gallatin  valley. 

Rumors  of  cholera  had  been  increasing  for 
weeks,  and  we  shaped  our  movements  so  as  to  head 
it  off  as  much  as  possible.     We  hurried  up   at  St. 


OF    ADDISON    COFFIN.  411 

Petersburg  to  get  to  Moscow  in  advance  of  it,  for  it 
was  coming  rapidly  on  its  old  route  from  Astrakhan 
on  the  Caspian.  Four  days  after  we  left  that  city 
it  came,  and  while  we  were  in  Berlin  it  reached  St. 
Petersburg,  when  we  were  in  Venice  it  was  at  Paris. 
At  Geneva  we  learned  that  Spain  would  quarantine 
against  Prance  at  a  given  date.  This  shortened  our 
stay  at  Geneva,  as  we  were  anxious  to  visit  Spain,  so 
we  departed,  going  by  v^ay  of  Lyons,  thence  south. 
to  Versailles,  and  from  there  due  west  across  Southern 
Prance  to  Irun,  on  the  Bay  of  Biscay  on  the  Span- 
ish frontier,  and  entered  Spain  twelve  hours  ahead 
of  the  inhibition. 

While  at  Geneva  we  made  several  local  trips, 
going  out  to  the  mountains,  up  and  down  the  valley 
among  the  vineyards  and  orchards  and  the  interest- 
ing villages.  Two  days  before  our  arrival  a  steamer 
on  the  lake  had  been  blown  to  pieces  by  defective 
boilers,  and  several  lives  lost.  While  we  were  there 
a  heavy  landslide  closed  the  railroads  at  the  lower 
end  of  the  lake.  This  made  quite  a  stir  among  the 
travelers,  but  we  took  it  very  coolly,  as  we  were  still 
good  for  a  twenty-mile  walk  and  could  go  around 
land-slides.     However,  we  were  not  obliged  to  do  this. 

Lyons  is  the  greatest  silk  manufacturing  city 
in  the  world;  cocoons  from  all  parts  of  the  earth  are 
shipped  there,  and  many  thousands  of  people  are  en- 


412  LIFE    AND    TRAVELS 

gaged  in  the  factories.  For  miles  around  there  are 
large  mulberry  groves,  and  hundreds  depend  for  their 
bread  upon  gathering  the  leaves  to  feed  the  silk- 
worms. 

The  journey  southward  to  the  Mediterranean, 
and  then  to  Irun,  was  through  another  beautiful  por- 
tion of  Europe.  All  of  the  land  is  under  the  highest 
state  of  cultivation.  AVe  passed  through  a  succession 
of  wheat  and  rye  fields,  rich  vegetable  gardens  and 
fields,  green  meadows,  mulberry  and  chestnut  groves, 
fruit  orchards,  and  on  all  sides  harvest  and  thresh- 
ing were  going  on.  The  hay,  straw  and  grain  were 
put  up  in  the  same  egg-shaped  stacks  that  we  saw  in 
Italy.  Every  section  seemed  to  have  same  local  spe- 
cialty; some  way  of  doing  certain  kinds  of  work  pe- 
culiar to  itself.  This  was  also  true  as  to  kinds  of 
grain  or  fruit.  A  few  miles  would  be  devoted  ex- 
clusively to  some  one  thing,  then  in  an  hour  we  would 
be  in  the  midst  of  another  sort,  and  so  it  continued, 
giving  a  sensational  interest  to  the  whole  trip.  An 
additional  beauty  was  the  Pyrenees  mountains,  which 
were  in  sight  every  hour,  covered  with  forests  to  their 
summits,  and  sharply  defined  against  the  clear  sky. 

With  all  this  perfection  in  agriculture,  the  dark 
shadow  of  the  war  system  of  France  is  blighting  the 
bloom  of  its  beautiful  valleys  and  dwarfing  the  hopes 
of  its  toiling  thousands,  while  wealth  and  ])ride  revel 


OF    ADDISON    COFFIN.  413- 

in  the  metropolis.  The  canker  of  poverty  and  want 
is  visible  in  the  face^  of  the  laborers  in  the  fields, 
and  the  vine  dressers  on  the  hills,  and  the  sad  coun- 
tenances of  the  mothers  speak  louder  than  words. 
Ragged,  hungry  children  are  as  placards  by  the  way- 
side that  tell  the  story  of  silent,  secret  decline,  fur- 
nishing a  dark  background  to  the  bright,  sunlit  hills 
of  seeming  prosperity.  Though  out  of  the  poj)ular 
route,  this  trip  across  Southern  France  will  pay  any 
one  who  loves  rural  scenerv,  and  to  pass  through  a 
land  connected  with  such  stirring,  historic  events, 
will  j)ay  both  time  and  expense. 

Our  first  contact  with  the  Spaniards  was  un- 
pleasant. The  ticket  agent  on  the  Spanish  side  of 
the  frontier  was  a  splendid  type  of  Castilian  woman, 
wi-th  a  wealth  of  black  hair  and  piercing;  black  eyes. 
When  she  found  we  could  not  speak  her  language 
she  deliberately  extorted  ten  dollars  more  than  the 
price  of  each  ticket  to  Madrid.  AVe  knew  it,  and 
through  an  American  speaker  demanded  restitution, 
but  with  a  defiant  toss  r»f  the  head  she  toLI  us  to 
''Help  yourselves,"  and  we  did,  but  when  we  arrived 
at  Madrid  we  reported  the  same  to  our  minister,  \\ho 
took  careful  note  of  the  case  and  bade  us  go  our  way. 
A  month  later  he  sent  the  money  to  our  address  in 
London,  saying  he  had  caught  the  lady  nicely,  and 
that  she  was  made  to  properly  refund  and  was  dis- 
charged. 


414  LIFE    AND   TRAVELS 

From  Irim  we  went  direct  to  Madrid,  though 
the  railroad  was  very  serpentine  in  its  course  through 
the  mountains  and  of  but  little  interest,  and  not  much 
ditferent  from  the  French  side  of  the  line,  _excepting 
there  was  more  land  sown  in  wheat.  After  a  few 
hours'  ride  over  a  rolling  country,  the  whole  scene 
suddenly  changed,  much  to  our  astonishment.  All 
the  suiTOunding  looked  and  seemed  as  though  I 
were  again  in  the  gTeat  central  valley  of  Mexico  in- 
stead of  Southern  Europe.  On  every  side  there  were 
marks  of  an  arid,  imgating  region,  the  grass  was 
brown  and  diy,  wheat  was  standing  dead  ripe  in  the 
field  or  lying  on  the  ground  not  bound  or  shocked, 
as  though  there  was  no  rain  to  damage  it.  The 
streams  of  water  were  low,  and  in  places  dry,  the 
work  in  the  lields  was  being  done  as  in  Mexico,  the 
people  look  and  moved  like  Mexicans  and  Arabs  of 
Syria. 

As  we  advanced  into  the  interior  our  astonish- 
ment increased;  instead  of  seeing  mowei-s  and  thresh- 
ers and  modern  agricultural  implements,  we  saw  the 
same  tools  as  in  Egypt  and  Syria,  and  the  work  all  be- 
ing done  by  hand.  There  were  large  threshing  floors 
cleared  off  the  ground,  to  which  was  carted  and  car- 
ried on  donkeys  and  the  heads  of  women  and  men,  the 
sheaves  of  grain,  and  threshed  by  the  primitive  meth- 
ods used  in  the  days  of  Abraham.     On  some  of  the 


OF    ADDISON    COFFIN.  415 

threshing  floors  were  heavy  poles  pinned  together, 
and  dragged  by  four  mules  or  a  yoke  of  oxen.  Some- 
times several  mules  or  oxen  were  tied  abreast  and 
driven  around  to  tread  out  the  grain;  in  one  place 
twenty-five  mules  were  going  on  a  floor  200  feet  in 
diameter.  These  floors  were  near  the  villages,  and 
all  the  inhabitants  were  engaged  in  the  work.  White 
the  treading  was  going  on  in  one  part  of  the  yard, 
others  were  busy  raking  up,  carrying  away  and  stack- 
ing the  straw;  still  others  were  piling  up  the  wheat 
in  the  chaff  into  large,  conical  piles;  others  again  were 
throwing  the  wheat  high  into  the  air  with  large, 
wooden  shovels,  and  -the  chaff  of  the  treading  floor" 
was  blown  away  by  the  wind. 

At  one  village  we  counted  three  hundred  people 
and  seventy-five  mules  and  oxen,  all  working  har- 
moniously in  their  places.  Five  dozen  sheaves  was 
a  load  for  a  cart,  one  dozen  for  a  man,  and  six  to 
eight  sheaves  for  a  woman.  During  the  harvest  time 
of  six  weeks  it  scarcely  ever  rains,  especially  away 
from  the  mountains,  and  there  is  no  necessity  or 
hurry  in  saving  the  grain  or  hay  crop,  probably  a 
good  thing  for  la^y,  indolent  people.  IvText  in  line  of 
surprises  was  the  waste,  worn  out  and  abandoned  land 
seen  on  everv  side,  sadly  reminding'  us  of  the  southern 
states  of  our  own  country.  We  soon  saw  and  learned 
that  there  was  more  of  such  land  in  Spain  than  in 


416  LIFE    AND    TRAVELS 

all  Europe,  outside  of  Turkey.  It  was  distressing 
to  see  long  gullies  and  fallen  stone  walls,  where  once 
had  been  luxuriant  fields,  olive  groves  and  broad  pas- 
ture lands.  Steady  de^dine  is  seen  in  the  once  stately 
mansions,  partly  in  ruins,  and  in  part  inhabited  by 
a  remnant  of  a  once  noble  family.  We  often  saw 
the  remains  of  old  olive  orchards,  which  covered 
thousands  of  acres,  now  slowly  disappearing,  with 
no  sign  of  new  orchards  being  planted.  In  like  man- 
ner large  forests  of  the  cork  oak  have  been  wantonly 
destroyed,  while  none  are  replanted.  Where  once 
were  beautiful  lawns,  parks,  waterwavs,  laklets  and 
pleasure  grounds,  now  cattle  and  sheep  browse  among 
the  thorns,  briars  and  dwarf  bushes.  Many  of  the 
smaller  towns  and  villages  are  sunburnt,  flowerless, 
shadeless,  cheerless-looking  places;  possibly  near  some 
of  the  towns  there  yet  remains  one  of  the  many  beau- 
tiful, suburban  churches  that  adorned  the  whole  land 
when  Spain  was  in  her  prime.  Evers'  mile  we  traveled 
in  all  the  country  was  a  surprise  and  disappointment; 
we  seemed  to  be  among  ruins  too  recent  to  have  the 
charm  of  antiquity,  and  too  old  to  retain  nuich  of 
their  former  glory. 

When  we  reached  Madrid  we  were  prepared  for 
disappointment,  and  rather  enjoyed  the  situation,  for 
th(^  Spanish  capital  has  a  wonderful  recMtrd  for  wealth 
and  grandeur,  and  there  is  still  much  that  is  impos- 


OF    ADDISON    COFFIN.  417 

iiig  and  subliiiu*.  We  made  haste  to  explore  the 
.  larger  jvortioii  of"  the  inagniticeiit  palaces,  cathedrals, 
nniseuins  and  splendid,  ])rincely  mansions;  then,  as 
usual,  we  started  on  the  byways,  but  to  our  horror 
we  found  that  we  were  in  the  midst  of  a  vindictive, 
murderous  race  of  men,  who  were  smarting  under 
the  galling  consciousness  that  they  had  fallen  so 
low,  that  there  was  none  so  vile  as  to  do  them  rev- 
erence. The  sight  of  self-conscious,  haughty  Eng- 
lishmen, who  walked  their  streets,  iired  their  re- 
vengeful spirits  with  a  thii'st  for  blood.  Xeither  the 
English  nor  Spaniards  have  forgotten  the  days  of  the 
great  armada,  and  the  haughty  boast  of  the  King 
of  Spain  to  carry  England  away  by  handfuls.  'Now 
England  has  Spain  financially  by  the  throat,  and 
delights  in  torturing  her  fallen  enemy  by  occasionally 
tightening  the  grip.  As  in  Constantinople,  we  felt 
a  sense  of  insecurity,  and  tin-ned  away  from  the  by- 
ways with  fear  and  loathing. 

As  soon  as  we  stepped  oft"  the  train  at  Madrid 
we  inquired  of  an  Englishman  for  the  American  min- 
ister. Imme<liately  a  tall,  sharp-eyed  man  turned 
round  and  looked  me  in  the  face  for  a  moment,  then 
assumed  indift'erence,  but  presently  he  re]>eated  his 
look,  and  before  we  started  away  he  had  inspected 
us  the  third  time.  T,  too,  had  been  watching  him, 
and  had  his  picture  fixed  in  my  mind.      We  had  some 


418  LIFE    AND    TRAVELS 

diliiculty  in  linding  our  minister,  but  eventually  suc- 
ceeded. When  we  came  out  of  his  office  mj  man  was 
standing  on  the  opposite  side  of  tlie  street,  evidently 
thinking  that  I  did  not  see  him.  It  was  nearly  a 
mile  to  the  hotel  we  had  chosen,  and  we  walked 
slowly  up  one  of  the  principal  streets;  by  the  time 
we  had  gone  two  squares  my  man  passed  us  with 
his  sharp  look.  I  now  told  my  friend  that  we  had 
a  life  guard,  as  in  Russia;  very  soon  he  passed  us 
again,  and  before  we  reached  the  hotel  he  had  gone 
by  four  times.  He  was  a  detective  who  understood 
English,  and  he  was  passing  to  catch  our  words.  I, 
too,  turned  detective,  and  resolved  to  keep  my  eye 
on  him,  though  I  was  glad  he  had  us  in  charge. 
A\nien  we  came  out  of  the  hotel  to  start  through  the 
city,  he  was  standing  near  seemingly  unconcerned, 
but  I  caught  him  on  a  pin  hook  the  first  effort.  I 
said  to  my  friend:  ''I  will  look  for  some  sensible  fel- 
low, and  see  if  I  can  make  him  understand  by  signs 
where  we  want  to  go."  Then  we  settled  on  oiu*  route, 
which  I  believe  my  man  heard.  I  looked  about  aim- 
lessly until  I  caught  his  eye,  then  approached  and 
began  my  pantomimes,  which  he  seemed  to  readily 
understand,  as  with  my  cane  I  marked  out  on  the 
sand  every  point  we  had  mentioned.  I  saw  he  was 
caught,  and  although  he  tried  his  best  to  take  us  un- 
awares in  our  talk,  when  he  was  in  sight  we  were 


OF    ADDISON    COFFIN.  419 

always  speaking  of  the  glory  of  Spain,  or  other  things 
he  eared  nothing  aliout.  We  left  Spain  and  Madrid 
withe  »nt  his  finding  out  that  1  knew  he  was  a  detective. 
I  saved  him  a  good  deal  of  travel  by  talking  over  the 
places  we  would  visit;  thus  he  was  able  to  go  across 
the  country  and  be  there  Avhen  we  an-ived,  with  his 
keen,  black  eyes  and  poorly-disguised  indifference.  My 
friend  said  I  might  amuse  myself  with  detectives,  but 
there  were  better  things  which  entertained  him. 

We  left  Madtid  for  Lisbon,  in  Portugal,  early 
in  the  morning,  and  were  soon  out  into  large  wheat 
fields  and  olive  groves,  which  had  once  covered  many 
broad  acres  of  land,  and  occasionally  passed  the  re- 
mains of  vineyards,  parts  of  large  estates  w^hich  are 
now  neglected  or  in  a  poor  cultivation,  while  the  man- 
sions belong  to  the  same  were  invariably  in  ruins. 
Everyw^here  the  villages  had  the  same  sunburnt,  cheer- 
less look,  the  same  primitive  style  of  agricultural  im- 
plements, the  same  eastern  style  of  building;  the 
oxen,  though  strong  and  large,  were  yoked  in 
primeval  fashion  to  carts  of  similar  date.  The  plains 
wei-e  destitute  of  forests,  the  low,  naked,  rocky  hills 
had  a  desolate,  Syrian  look;  but  for  the  people  it 
would  have  been  easy  to  believe  we  were  in  Western 
Asia.  The  harvesting  and  threshing  of  wheat  and 
rye  was  still  going  on.  In  many  of  the  river  val- 
leys were  fields  of  American  coi*n,  but  it  was  the  kind 


420  LIFE    AND    TRAVELS 

grown  in  Mexico  or  on  the  lower  Danube  river,  small, 
white,  very  hard,  resembling  the  hackbury  in  the 
Ohio  valley;  two  crops  are  grown  each  year.  On 
some  of  the  limestone  hills  were  groves  of  mulberry 
trees  like  those  growing  on  Mt.  Lebanon,  in  Syria, 
which  seemed  to  be  very  productive  in  fruit  and 
leaves;  the  sei-ond  crop  of  leaves  was  being  gathered. 

With  all  of  this  outward  sign  of  decay  and  de- 
-cline,  the  whole  of  Spain  is  full  of  interest  to  the  his- 
torian. Like  Greece,  it  has  had  much  to  do  \\dth 
humanity  in  the  ])ast,  and  nearly  all  its  rivers,  val- 
leys and  mountains  have  witnessed  stirring  events — 
it  has  been  a  battlefield  of  the  worM.  Tt  was  fa- 
mous in  the  days  of  the  Judges  of  Israel  as  a  trading 
mart  and  for  planting  Hebrew  colonies.  The  early 
Iberians  seem  to  have  been  a  highly  civilized  and 
commercial  people.  It  was  the  field  on  which  Rome 
and  Carthage  first  met  in  their  struggle  for  empire. 
Then  it  became  one  of  the  principal  provinces  of 
the  Roman  empire,  and  in  the  revolutions  that  con- 
vulsed the  world  from  the  seventh  to  the  thirteenth 
century,  Spain  bore  an  important  part.  In  modern 
times  she  has  been  one  of  the  grandest,  as  well  as 
one  of  the  most  wicked  and  cruel,  nations  in  Europe, 
and  is  now  suffering  retribution. 

We  entered  Portugal  after  night,  and  made  the 
run  to  Lisbon  in   the  dark.     Though   it  was  but  a 


OF    ADDISON    COFFIN.  421 

few  miles,  1  regretted  luissiiig  the  scenery,  but  we 
were  euiiipensated  by  the  view  of  Lisbon,  which  is 
a  very  beautiful  place,  with  an  inland  harbor.  Like 
the  cities  of  Spain,  its  numerous  marble  palaces,  pub- 
lic buildings,  old,  princely  homes  of  the  nobility,  its 
monuments,  colonnades,  parks  and  gardens  attest  to 
its  former  wealth  and  power.  Alas!  like  Venice, 
there  are  signs  of  decay  and  wealth  on  every  side, 
the  rust  and  dust  of  laiin  is  tarnishing  its  golden 
sheen,  its  marble  halls  are  being  stained  with  the 
mildew  of  time.  As  I  w^alked  the  beautiful  streets 
and  down  to  the  landing,  the  history  of  Portugal's 
glory  and  her  King  John  came  back  to  memory.  I 
thought  of  the  tide  of  wealth  that  once  came  into 
port  from  all  the  earth  in  her  fleet  of  a  thousand 
ships  and  of  her  influence  among  the  nations,  and 
when  1  turned  to  contrast  the  Lisbon  of  to-day,  with 
its  empty  harbor,  with  the--  Lisbon  of  the  past,  the 
contrast  was  so  striking  and  sad  that  I  had  to  dismiss 
the  subject  and  try  to  hide  the  picture.  Nor  w^as  the 
historical  part  alone  deplorable — the  inhabitants  are 
a  far  sadder  sight  when  we  remember  that  noble, 
Iberian  race  from  which  the  Portuguese  descend. 
To-day  not  one  in  five  is  of  pure  blood:  all  the  others 
have  a  combination  of  African,  East  Indian.  Moor- 
ish, Siamese,  Arabian  and  Turkish,  with  other  un- 
defined mixtures.  At  fii'st  sight  the  amalgamation 
27 


422  LIFE    AND    TRAVELS 

is  repulsive  and  revolting,  but  we  soon  become  recon- 
ciled wlien  we  see  no  trace  of  prejudice  among  the 
people. 

Those  who  remember  the  account  of  the  earth- 
quake at  Lisbon,  as  given  in  the  school  books  of  sixty 
years  ago,  will  also  call  to  mind  the  picture  of  the 
ruined  wharf,  and  be  intensely  interested  to  see  a 
part  of  that  dock  yet  in  sight;  the  harbor  at  Lisbon 
brings  to  recollection  many  other  memories  of  school- 
book  stories.  Indeed,  a  visit  to  Lisbon  will  remind 
one  of  much  important  history,  for  Portugal,  thougb 
a  mere  s])eck  of  territory  in  Europe,  did  a  wonderful 
amount  of  colonizing;  it  planted  many  eolordes 
around  Africa  and  in  southern  Asia,  besides  the  now 
great  Republic  of  Brazil. 

AVe  went  north  from  Lisbon  on  the  return  trip  to 
(3porto,  through  Northern  Portugal  and  Western 
Spain ;  the  country  was  'much  the  same  as  that  we 
had  passed  through,  though  there  seemed  to  be 
more  unproductive,  neglected  land.  From  Oporto 
we  went  eastward  to  Salamanca,  a  city  celebrated 
through  all  history,  and  especially  during  the  five 
hundred  years'  war  with  the  Moors.  It  bears  the 
marks  of  age,  of  battle  and  siege,  and  if  its  old  walls 
could  speak  they  would  tell  of  murder,  torture  and 
crimes  untold;  but  it  will  figure  in  history  no  more, 
its  davs  are  numbered.     Then  we  went  to  Valladolid, 


OF    ADDISON    COFFIN.  423 

auotlier  city  with  a  wonderful  history.  It  was  once 
a  beautiful  place  and  a  grand  country,  but  is  now  on 
the  decline.  It  was  one  of  the  headquarters  of  the 
Christian  heroes,  who  never  bowed  the  kne"e  to  Moor- 
ish power.  In  that  part  of  Spain  Pelagius  did  some 
of  his  most  heroic  deeds,  and  finally  turned  the  tide 
of  conquest  and  saved  his  country.  We  crossed  the 
Elbro  river,  the  celebrated  pass  where  Pelagius  made 
one  of  his  celebrated  strategic  moves,  which  made 
him  a  terror  to  the  Moor.  It  is  in  a  beautiful,  ro- 
mantic country,  which  men  might  die  to  defend,  as  did 
those  fearless  mountaineei^.  We  reached  the  Span- 
ish frontier  at  Irun,  where  we  entered  France  and 
felt  quite  a  sense  of  relief  and  safety  when  we  crossed 
the  line. 

Before  dismissing  Spain,  I  would  say  that  all 
who  wish  to  study  Europe  as  it  is  to-day,  should  visit 
Spain  and  Portugal  so  as  to  see  their  present  con- 
dition. The  striking  contrast  between  them  and  other 
nations  of  Europe  will  be  forced  upon  the  traveler 
in  a  startling  manner,  and  the  lessons  taught  are  es 
sential  to  an  intelligent  understanding  of  modern  his- 
tory and  the  relation  existing  between  Europe  and 
America,  and  the  English  and  the  Spanish-speaking 
peoples.  Those  who  do  not  care  for  such  study,  I 
would  advise  to  leave  Spain  and  Portgual  out  of  their 
European  tour.      Spend  the  time  and  money  in  seeing 


424  LIFE    AND    TRAVELS 

Noi'M^ay,  Sweden,  Finland,  and  the  Land  of  the 
Midnight  Sun.  Aside  from  history,  Spain  has  noth- 
ing but  what  can  be  duplicated  in  other  countries,  but 
the  places  just  mentioned  have  attractions  not  seen 
anywhere  else,  and  they  are  alike  interesting  to  his- 
torian, scientist  and  tourist. 

On  the  morning  of  July  24th,  1892,  we  bought 
tickets  for  Orleans,  France,  but  a  bewhiskered,  self- 
conceited  official  put  us  on  the  train  going  to  Lyons, 
and  we  were  in  a  through  car  and  no  conductor  or 
guard  came  in,  but  as  we  were  carried  on  the  sun 
shone  in  on  the  wrong  side  for  us  to  be  going  tow- 
ards Orleans.  We  made  several  efforts  to  make  our- 
selves understood,,  but  failed  until  we  spied  a  young 
Englishman  at  a  station,  to  whom  we  explained  the 
situation ;  in  a  moment  he  saw  the  mistake  and  called 
an  official.  We  knew  the  railroad  laws  in  such  cases, 
and  required  them  to  send  us  to  our  destination  by 
the  nearest  route;  we  had  been  taken  east  one  hun- 
dred miles  in  stead  of  north.  We  were  changed  to 
another  road  and  whirled  away,  then  transferred 
again,  and  at  the  end  of  five  hours  we  were  landed 
at  Bordeaux,  on  our  original  route.  From  there  we 
traveled  through  a  very  beautiful  coimtry  of  vine- 
yards, rye  fields  and  market  gardens;  harvest  was 
still  going  on,  and  the  countrs"  seemed  to  be  in  the 
glow  of  summer  bloom,  and  in  the  midst  of  a  pros- 


OF    ADDISON    COFFIN.  425 

perous  year.  It  was  after  niidnight  when  we  arrived 
in  Orleans;  we  were  tired,  hungry  and  out  of  all  pa- 
tience with  everything  French. 

Next  day  we  spent  in  the  nurseries  of  T.  and  E. 
Trausan,  two  of  the  largest  nurserymen  in  Europe, 
whom  my  friend,  J.  Van  Lindley,  had  met  in  the 
United  States,  so  there  was  a  hearty  greeting  between 
them.  To  my  companion,  the  sight  of  this  wonder- 
ful nursery  was  past  description;  to  see  it  had  been 
one  of  the  hopes  of  life,  and  when  it  was  realized 
it  was  a  joy  unspeakable.  The  proprietors  were 
most  kind  to  us,  and  were  unwearied  in  showing 
us  through  their  wonderful  collection  of  the  fruits 
and  flowers  of  the  world.  This  nursery  has  been 
generations  striving  to  increase  its  beauty  and  use- 
fulness. I  cannot  attempt  a  description  of  this  beau- 
tiful place — none  but  an  expert  florist  could  do  it, 
and  no  other  class  of  readei-s  could  understand  the 
portrayal.  At  the  end  of  five  or  six  hours  I  had 
to  stop  amid  a  sea  of  magnificent  blooms  and  rest, 
while  my  friend  went  on  with  radiant  face  and  spark- 
ling eye  among  the  ever-changing,  but  bewildering, 
world  of  beauty.  Trees,  fruits,  flowers,  ben*ies,  nuts, 
roots,  bulbs,  vines,  creepers,  dwarfs  and  giants  were 
there  being  tested  for  use,  ornament  or  information. 
Perhaps  the  most  interesting  were  the  hundreds  of 
hybrids,  budding,  grafting  and  double  vitalizing,  in 


426  LIFE    AND    TRAVELS 

wavs  and  me^ns  that  have  never  entered  the  imagin- 
ation of  the  average  mortal. 

When  I  fell  out  of  line  and  stopped,  I  saw 
manv  things  that  came  within  my  comprehension, 
though  dim-eyed.  There  were  many  varieties  of  trees 
and  vines,  with  limbs  bent  down  and  covered  with 
earth  until  rootlets  were  formed,  then  the  outer  end 
was  cut  off  with  the  roots  and  propagated  from  cut- 
tings and  grafts  as  a  new  variety.  What  appeared 
to  be  genuine  rose  trees  turned  out  upon  close  in- 
spection to  be  roses  grafted  in  a  very  ingenious  man- 
ner into  a  shrub  thorn,  and  I  came  to  the  conclusion 
that  there  were  no  rose  trees  in  nature.  These  are 
but  a  few  of  the  surprises  that  I  came  across  among 
the  great  multitude  of  artificial  products  which  are 
sold  as  natural,  yet  the  world  believes  in  them  and 
is  satisfied,  and  so  it  ever  mil  be.  The  nurserymen 
are  as  skillful  in  carving,  cutting,  dissecting,  destroy- 
ing and  restoring  among  the  forms  of  vegetable 
life  as  are  the  surgeons  in  working  with  the  more  del- 
icate and  complex  forms  of  animal  life.  At  dinner 
we  were  unusually  animated;  I  could  not  talk  with 
experts  on  things  pertaining  to  the  craft,  but  when 
it  came  to  telling  American  stories  I  was  equal  to 
the  best,  and  bridged  over  the  breaks  in  the  entertain- 
ment. 

From   Orleans  we   went   westward   to   visit   the 


OF   ADDISON    COFFIN.  427 

second  largest  nursery  at  Angers,  owned  by  Louis 
Leeroy,  which  was  as  interesting  as  the  one  at  Or- 
leans. We  were  shown  through  the  home  grounds, 
then  Friend  Lindley  was  taken  out  to  see  more  ex- 
tensive grounds  a  few  miles  from  the  city,  leaving 
me  to  wander  alone  among  the  wonderful  collection 
of  all  that  was  beautiful,  useful,  novel,  charming, 
useless  and  monstrous,  in  fact,  all  that  any  of  taste 
or  any  without  taste  might  call  for.  The  class  who 
loves  the  truly  beautiful  would  find  it  there  in  per- 
fection, while  those  who  liked  to  be  humbugged  could 
be  accommodated  to  the  full;  those  who  want  to  be 
fashionable  could  be  loaded  with  the  light  and  worth- 
less. 

From  Angers  we  went  northward  to  St.  Malo, 
on  the  channel,  one  of  the  old  romantic  cities  of  the 
middle  ages.  It  stands  on.  an  island,  and  is  one  of 
the  few  places  which  has  its  old  walls  and  battle- 
ments still  perfect.  It  is  so  situated  that  it  was  strong 
by  nature,  and  it  was  greatly  strengthened  by  art, 
that  until  heavy  guns  were  invented  it  was  well  nigh 
impregnable.  We  could  walk  around  on  its  walls 
without  danger,  and  it  is  one  of  the  grand  relics  of 
the  past.  It  is  now  a  great  resort  for  sea  bathing, 
and  has  a  novel  contrivance  for  the  sport:  a  slotted 
cage  or  house  is  made  on  wheels,  which  is  run  down 
a  track  until  sufficient  depth  is  attained,  when  the 
bath  is  indulged  in  without  fear  or  danger;  a  hun- 


428  LIFE    AND    TRAVELS 

dred  such  houses  are  manipulated  by  a  small  engine. 
Those  who  experienced  it  said  it  was  enjoyable  to 
be  in  the  cage.  When  there  was  a  rough  sea  out- 
side the  great  swells  rolled  and  broke  harmlessly  over 
fchem.  A  day  at  St.  Malo  is  worth  two  days  amidst 
the  disgusting  vanity  and  deceit  of  Paris. 

We  next  took  a  small  channel  steamer  for  the 
island  of  Jersey,  the  original  home  of  the  Jersey  cow ; 
it  is  a  beautiful  place,  and  every  available  part  is 
in  cultivation.  It  is  subdivided  into  small  farms  of 
from  five  to  twenty  acres  each.  There  are  many 
market  gardens  and  immense  glass  houses  in  which 
fruit  and  vegetables  are  grown  for  the  London  and 
Paris  markets.  The  celebrated  cow  is  seen  singly 
or  in  small  herds,  tethered  to  a  stake,  grazing  in 
lots;  they  are  nowhere  running  loose.  When  we  con- 
sider the  size  of  the  island  we  do  not  wonder  that 
the  cattle  are  small.  We  found  the  day's  ride  most 
interesting,  the  fresh  sea  breeze,  the  green  fields,  and 
the  ever-swelling  chop  sea  made  up  a  scene  that  we 
will  not  forget. 

Our  next  stop  was  at  the  island  of  Guernsey, 
where  a  new  surprise  met  us  in  the  fonn  of  huge 
glass  enclosures,  in  which  all  kinds  of  fruit  and  vege- 
tables are  grown.  Like  the  lumber  in  Sweden,  there 
were  more  glass  houses  on  Guernsey  than  we  haa 
seen  in  all  the  world  beside.      The  amount  of  fruit, 


OF    ADDISON    COFFIN.  429 

vegetables  and  grapes  grown  under  glass  is  astonish- 
ing to  Americans.  We  walked  through  one  of  the 
grape  houses,  700  feet  long,  which  had  20,000  bunches 
just  ripening,  each  one  weighing  half  a  pound.  Near 
by  were  several  houses  of  tomatoes  in  every  stage 
of  maturity,  so  there  may  not  be  a  break  in  the  daily 
supply.  One  house,  about  twenty-hve  feet  high, 
fifty  feet  wide,  and  seven  hundred  long,  was  full  of 
ripe  tomatoes.  The  plants  were  in  boxes  in  tiers  from 
the  ground  to  the  ridge  pole,  and  presented  a  grand 
sight ;  the  whole  seemed  to  be  a  solid  mass  of  delicious 
fruit. 

There  is  a  fleet  of  small  steamers  which  carry 
the  products  of  these  islands  to  market.  Some  of 
them  look  like  a  solid  mass  of  basket  and  boxes  of 
fruit  of  every  size,  piled  around  a  smoke  stack,  and 
moving  over  the  water.  We  spent  a  day  going  around 
the  island  and  among  the  glass  houses.  We  also  saw 
the  native  Guernsey  cow  grazing  in  the  small  lots, 
and  we  pronounced  it  better  than  the  Jersey,  w^hen 
each  is  seen  on  its  own  soil. 

The  people  of  the  Channel  Islands  are  largely 
[N^orman  in  blood,  but  are  intermingled  with  French, 
Irish  and  Scotch,  consequently  they  have  a  singular 
mixture  in  language  and  local  customs.  like  many 
other  mortals,  they  have  a  very  good  opinion  of  them- 
selves.    Almost   any   observer   will   be   interested  in 


430  LIFE    AND    TRAVELS 

the  amount  of  heavy  sea  walls  that  have  been  built 
around  the  islands  to  prot-ect  them  from  the  terri- 
ble force  of  the  Atlantic  storms  that  come  into  the 
mouth  of  the  channel  from  the  west  with  a  power 
that  landsmen  cannot  understand. 

From  Guernsey  we  went  by  steamer  to  Wey- 
mouth, in  southw^est  England,  thence  to  Loudon  and 
to  our  former  home,  with  our  friends,  John  B.  Watts 
and  family,  where  we  arrived  at  9  p.  m.  July  30th, 
after  an  absence  of  fifty-seven  days,  having  traveled 
nearly  10,000  miles.  The  four  extreme  points  we 
had  visited  were  Ilaparanda,  Sweden:  Moscow,  Rus- 
sia; Venice,  Italy,  and  Lisbon,  Portugal.  We  had 
passed  through  thirteen  different  nations,  speaking 
seven  languages  besides  English. 

We  finished  our  tour  on  the  Continent  without 
accident  or  serious  delay  at  any  place.  We  suffered 
but  little  inconvenience  from  ignorance  of  language, 
and  we  learned  to  travel  at  less  than  half  the  ex- 
pense of  ordinary  tourists.  We  readily  adapted  our- 
selves to  new  surroudings,  and  had  no  difficulty  in 
getting  along  with  all  classes  of  people:  it  was  known 
evervwhere  that  we  were  whollv  unarmed. 


CHAPTER  TWELVE. 


Trip  Tln-ough  Wales — Ruins  of  Tintern  Abbey — 
Across  the  Gliannel  to  Ireland — Dublin  and  Sur- 
roundings— Trip  to  the  South  and  West,  Lake  Kil- 
larney,  and  tlie  Wild  Irish — Limerick,  the  Old 
Town,  Treaty  Stone  of  1692 — Go  North  and  East 
-^Sligo— Giants'  C'auseway — Go  to  Home  of  My 
Ancestors  at  Balynalinck — Old  Temple  and  Burial 
Ground — Vision  of  the  Past — Cross  the  Channel  to 
Glasgow — Trip  Through  Scotland  and  Back  to 
London — : Voyage  Home — Storm  at  Sea — Ship 
Disabled — Adrift  Eighty-eight  Hours — Land  at 
New  York — Return  Home. 

We  rested  a  few  days  in  London,  then  began 
looking  toward  the  end  of  our  long  program.  Ire- 
land and  Scotland  were  yet  to  be  seen,  both  of  them 
having  particular  interest,  the  first  especially.  On 
August  5th  w^e  started  w^estward,  going  to  Bristol, 
where  we  stopped  and  walked  over  and  under  one  of 
the   celebrated   suspension   bridges   over  the    Severn 

river.      It  is  over  two  hundred  feet  above  water,  and 

r 

in  a  wild,  romantic  place.     Then  we  passed  through 

(431) 


432  LIFE    AND    TRAVELS 

the  three-mile  raikoad  tuunel,  under  the  bay  at  the 
mouth  of  the  Severn.  From  there  we  went  to  Tin- 
tern  Abbey  ruins,  on  the  Wye  river.  It  is  one  of 
the  finest  in  England,  and,  was  built  in  the  fifth  or 
sixth  century,  before  images  were  admitted  to  other 
churches.  It  is  two  hundred  feet  long,  one  hundred 
wide,  and  the  gables  one  hundred  feet  high.  The 
walls  are  very  massive,  but  still  perfect;  all  the  wood 
work  has  been  gone  for  centuries.  It  stands  in  a 
deep,  romantic  mountain  glen,  at  the  head  of  small- 
boat  navigation.  The  ruins  were  forgotten  by  the- 
outside  world  for  many  hundreds  of  years,  until  a 
railroad  penetrated  that  region;  now  it  is  popular, 
and  it  is  well  worth  seeing.  We  took  a  circuitous 
route  through  Wales  and  the  Welsh  mountains,  and 
finally  came  out  at  Liverpool.  There  we  took  steamer 
and  crossed  the  channel  to  Duldin,  Ireland.  The 
passage  was  made  in  the  night,  on  smooth  water,  with 
quite  a  throng  of  tourists  and  Inisiness  men.  There 
was  much  Irish  wit,  English  dignity  and  American 
exaggeration;  it  was  a  question  as  to  which  was  en- 
titled to  the  premium,  the  Irishman  or  the  American. 
As  we  steamed  slowly  up  Dublin  bay,  or  harbor,  1 
was  charmed  with  its  perfect  beauty  and  sunlit  bright- 
ness; it  is  one  of  the  few  places  hard  to  over-color 
when  seen  under  favorable  circumstances.  Dublin, 
like  ConstantiHO})le,  when  seen  in  the  early  morning, 


OF    ADDISON    COFFIN.  433 

is  a  pretty  picture,  not  to  be  forgotten;  but  Dublin 
is  internally  liandsonie,  far  more  so  than  Constant- 
inople. My  friend  being  somewhat  unwell,  rested 
at  a.  hotel,  while  I  took  a  tram  car  and  saw  the  beauti- 
ful city  from  end  to  end,  and  then  ran  out  on  the  sub- 
urban roads.  Like  the  landing  in  Sweden,  I  was 
full  of  expectation,  and  every  object  and  place  had 
an  interest,  for  Ireland  was  the  home  of  my  maternal 
ancestors,  and  to  see  it  had  been  one  of  the  hopes 
of  life.  Now  that  I  was  actually  treading  its  almost 
sacred  soil,  I  was  filled  with  emotions  almost  beyond 
control.  By  night  I  was  tired  and  hungry,  but  full 
of  enthusiasm  for  the  grand  old  city,  w^hich  has  seen 
as  much  history  as  any  nation  in  Europe.  It  was  in- 
habited centuries  before  Rome  or  Athens  were 
founded,  and  the  iXlbanoids  were  in  Ireland  when 
Egypt  was  young.  One  of  the  interesting  points  in 
Dublin  is  the  old  cemetery,  where  Ireland's  noble 
dead  have  been  buried  for  four  thousand  years. 
Among  the  sacred  tombs  of  the  past,  none  is  held 
in  greater  veneration  than  that  of  O'C^nnell,  the 
gifted  statesman  and  orator  of  this  century.  It  was 
a  grand  and  solemn  enjoyment  to  walk  among  the 
tombs  of  our  ancestors,  and  call  to  mind  their  noble 
deeds,  and  cast  the  mantle  of  charity  OA^er  their  sins. 
From  Dublin  we  went  southwest  to  Port  Arlinc>- 
ton,  thence  south  to  Ivilkennv  and  Waterford.     It  was 


434:  LIFE    AND    TRAVELS 

a  grand  ride  tlirougli  a  cliariiiiiig  panorama  of  green 
fields,  grass-covered  hills  and  low  mountain  ridges. 
On  every  side  we  saw  fields  of  rye,  oats  and  grass, 
with  broad  pastures  on  tlie  hills,  and  in  the  beautiful 
valleys  fields  of  potatoes.  The  grain  and  grass  was 
ripe  for  harvest,  while  the  potatoes  were  in  their 
prime  and  rapidly  maturing.  As  we  went  forward 
the  scene  was  constantly  changing  as  the  hills  and 
valleys  came  in  view.  Not  the  least  novelty  was  the 
large  number  of  fine,  white  hogs  that  were  grazing 
like  cattle  on  the  green  hillsides,  and  it  is  safe  to 
say  we  saw  more  hogs  in  Ireland  than  in  any  coun- 
try in  Europe.  Hogs  would  be  a  specialty  in  one 
section,  while  it  would  be  sheep  and  cattle  in  another. 
The  whole  scene  came  to  us  like  a  revelation,  for  in- 
stead of  finding  it  neglected  and  desolate,  like  Spain 
and  Portugal,  we  found  Ireland  to  be  the  finest  look- 
ing country  in  Europe;  yet  I  am  sorry  to  say  some 
specimens  of  manhood  were  in  striking  contrast  with 
the  glorious  land  in  which  they  lived.  Though  earth, 
air  and  sky  were  inspiring,  we  could  not  shut  our 
eyes  to  the  fact  that  we  were  in  the  midst  of  a 
■ruined,  whisky-soaked,  tobacco-smoked  and  priest- 
ridden  people,  for  whom  there  is  no  hope  until  whisky 
and  priests  are  banished  from  the  land.  But  for  this 
fact,  everywhere  staring  us  in  the  face,  our  ride 
through  Ireland  would  have  been  the  finest  in  all  our 


OF    ADDISON    COFFIN.  485 

travels.  Xo  country  ever  presented  so  many  possi- 
bilities in  such  desirable  combinations,  under  such  a 
climate  and  ocean  surroundings. 

In  passing  Kilkenny,  all  Americans  involuntar- 
ily call  to  mind  the  amusing  cat  story,  but  are  sur- 
prised to  see  so  beautiful  a  town  })erclied  on  the 
side  of  a  hill  of  the  finest  variegated  black  marble, 
in  such  quantities  that  the  streets  are  paved  with  it; 
the  people  seem  to  be  unconscious  of  their  world- 
wide notoriety.  There  is  a  grand  succession  of  green 
hills  until  Waterford,  on  the  southern  coast,  is  reached. 
That  place  was  famous  two  thousand  years  ago,  and 
for  a  long  time  held  out  against  the  Norman  con- 
quest, but  to-day  it  is  only  a  nice  sea  coast  town,  with 
no  distinguishing  marks.  We  now  m<:)ved  west  across 
the  south  of  Ireland  to  Lake  Killarney.  Next  morn- 
ing walked  out  to  the  lake  and  noted  every  turn  in 
the  road,  every  tree  and  bush,  fur  we  were  on  sen- 
sational, as  well  as  historic,  ground.  Near  the  boat 
landing  we  were  rejoiced  to  see  one  of  the  grand  ruins 
of  Ireland's  lost  glory.  This  tow^er  was  built  about 
the  beginning  of  our  era,  by  a  war-like,  independent 
tribe,  as  their  stronghold,  and  so  well  was  it  con- 
structed that  it  defied  all  efforts  to  take  it.  During 
the  Danish  and  Nomian  invasions  it  w^ithstood  every 
attempt  to  besiege  or  take  it  by  storm;  in  time  there 
arose  a  prediction  that  it  would  never  be  taken  until 


436  LIFE    AND    TRAVELS 

attacked  bv  strangers  who  would  come  by  water. 
Tbe  Danes  finally  attempted  to  starve  it  out;  to  do 
this  they  Avent  to  the  pine  forests  at  the  head  of  the 
lake,  and  built  several  flat  boats  to  cut  off  supplies 
by  way  of  the  lake.  When  the  garrison  saw  the 
boats  corning  they  remembered  the  prediction,  and 
at  once  fled  to  the  mountains.  The  Danes  tried  in 
vain  to  destroy  it;  a  square  tower  nearly  one  hun- 
dred feet  high  and  forty  feet  square  still  stands  un- 
broken. Many  of  the  strong  walls  and  outer  defenses 
are  yet  standing  in  grim,  massive  greatness,  defying 
-even  the  hand  of  time.  The  ruins  alone  are  worth 
a  trip  to  the  lake,  even  though  that  body  of  water 
is  celebrated  as  the  scene  of  St.  Patrick's  last  effort 
and  final  success  in  destroying  the  wise  old  serpent 
in  Ireland.  Aside  from  these  interests,  the  lake  is 
more  charming  than  half  the  popular  ones  of  Europe. 
We  took  a  boat  ride  and  landed  on  one  of  the  nu- 
merous little  islands,  where  there  w-as  a  church  and 
celebrated  school  in  the  early  centuries  of  our  era. 
It  was  surely  a  model  of  sylvan  beauty  and  rural  soli- 
tude, surrounded  by  splendid  mountain  scenery;  even 
yet  there  are  traces  of  the  secluded  walks  along  the 
rocky  shore.  VVhile  we  were  out  a  sudden  gale  came 
through  a  mountain  pass  that  made  the  lake  danger- 
ously rough.  Our  young  boatman  tried  hard  to  hold 
his  course;  after  a  while  we  saw  it  was  bevond  his 


OF   ADDISON    COFFIN.  437 

power,  and  tuld  him  to  run  before  the  wind  until  we 
could  get  ashore.  This  he  did  and  landed  us  two 
miles  from  our  starting  place;  we  walked  back  to  the 
town,  tired  and  wet,  but  highly  pleased  with  our 
day's  adventures.  We  will  not  forget  the  old  ruin, 
the  lake  nor  the  dangerous  run  in  an  open  boat  be- 
fore the  gale.  The  town  of  Killarney  is  a  clean, 
lively  place,  the  inhabitants  are  all  full  of  droli, 
mother-wit,  ready  to  "answer  a  fool  according  to  his 
folly." 

We  next  traveled  north  to  Tralee,  a  city  of 
twelve  or  fifteen  thousand  inhabitants,  hid  away 
among  the  Kerry  hills,  and  almost  unknown  to  the 
world,  yet  it  is  one  of  the  very  interesting  places  on 
account  of  its  people,  who  are  pure  types  of  Tip- 
perary,  or  wild  Irish,  who  have  not  yet  lost  all  their 
tameless  independence.  They  were  the  last  of  the 
Irish  to  accept  Christianity,  and  they  seem  to-day 
as  if  they  had  received  it  but  imperfectly.  We  took 
a  long  walk  through  the  city,  among  the  half  wild 
people.  It  was  market  day,  and  there  were  thousands 
of  the  country  and  towm  folk  on  the  streets  and  in 
the  market  place.  They  all  talked  the  rich,  bumble- 
bee Irish;  half  the  men  and  boys  were  armed  with 
a  shillalah.  Everybody  was  talking  and  gesticulat- 
ing, and  at  first  it  seemed  as  though  there  was  go- 
ing to  be  a  riot,  but  w^e  soon  learned  that  all  things 

28 


438  LIFE    AND    TRAVELS 

were  normal.  There  was  a  multitude  of  little  carts, 
loaded  witli  country  products,  all  managed  by  women ; 
in  fact,  it  was  the  only  place  we  found  where  women 
held  absolute  sway.  In  more  than  one  instance  we 
saw  women  have  their  drunken  husbands  tumbled 
.into  the  cart  among  baskets  and  buckets,  and  hauled 
away  like  sacks  of  meal.  On  the  sidewalk  and  in 
the  market  the  women  held  the  right  of  Avay  with- 
out question.  The  half-grown  boys  looked  like  com- 
pounds of  frolic,  fight  and  fim^  and  the  men  as  if 
they  were  spoiling  for  a  light  with  their  shillalahs. 
We  were  told  that  it  took  twice  the  number  of  police 
to  keep  order  than  it  did  in  any  other  city  under 
English  law. 

In  one  part  of  the  market  street,  and  in  an  ad- 
joining thoroughfare  there  seemed  to  be  an  unsusual 
number  of  two-hundred  pound  ladies,  all  motherly 
looking,  going  about  with  huge  baskets  on  their  heads, 
clearing  the  sidewalks  and  opening  a  lane  wherever 
they  passed.  Others  were  standing  at  the  stalls,  as 
noisy  as  parrots,  while  men  and  boys  gave  them  a 
w^ide  berth.  If  you  want  unadulterated  Irishmen,  go 
to  Tralee;  there  is  nothing  stereotyped  there.  If  you 
are  an  enthusiast  over  Irish  independence,  do  not  go 
there,  or  you  will  lose  your  faith  in  self-government 
for  Ireland  for  many  days  to  come,  thoujofh  it  may 
not  increase  your  respect  for  England^s  misrule. 


OF   ADDISON    COFFIN.  439 

1  learned  an  additional  lesson  in  humanity  at  Tra- 
lee,  for  tliere  the  worst  elements  of  original  Irish  life 
can  be  seen.  We  are  given  a  chance  to  contrast  the 
Phenician  colonist  with  the  Hebrews,  who  came  to 
Ireland  about  the  same  time.  The  fierce,  ungov- 
ernable spirit  of  the  Phenician,  when  under  the  in- 
fluence of  whisky,  strong  excitement  or  superstitious 
zeal,  is  harder  to  control  than  wild  animals,  hence 
the  term  wild  Irish  has  been  given  the  Phenician 
descent  in  southwest  Ireland. 

Our  next  move  was  to  Limerick  back  into^  the 
conventional  route.  Limerick  had  so  many  historic 
memories  that  the  following  morning  by  daylight  I 
was  out  exploring  the  city.  I  first  went  into  old 
Limerick,  the  city  in  time  of  Cromwell,  and  found 
the  ruins  of  the  house  of  the  general,  which  Crom- 
well battered  down;  then  to  the  famous  round  tower, 
which  withstood  and  defied  every  effort  of  Cromwell 
to  take  it.  As  seen  now,  it  looks  massive,  gloomy 
and  battle-scarred,  and  probably  has  seen  as  much 
sanguinary  war  as  any  tower  of  the  last  two  thous- 
and years,  for  it  occupies  the  spot  where  the  first 
tower  was  built  twenty-five  centuries  ago.  It  is  one 
among  the  many  places  that  have  witnessed  some 
terrible  massacres,  feats  of  heroism,  and  half  a  dozen 
times  has  been  the  last  stronghold  of  safety.  Across 
the  river  from  tlie  old  tower  stands  the  treaty  stone. 


440  LIFE    AND    TRAVELS 

now  raised  on  a  pedestal  over  the  spot  where  it  lay 
in  1692,  when  the  treaty  of  Limerick  was  signed  on 
it.  Yet  that  treaty  was  not  kept,  nor  is  it  yet  ful- 
filled by  the  English;  this  is  a  lasting  blot  on  Eng- 
land's character. 

The  people  delight  to  show  a  point  in  the  wall 
where  there  had  been  a  breach  made  by  the  English 
artillery,  and  the  defenders  had  fallen.  The  Eng- 
lish were  sure  of  victory,  when  the  women,  seeing 
the  terrible  danger,  rushed  to  the  breach  and  fought 
with  such  frenzy  that  they  were  driving  the  English 
back,  when  liel{)  arrived  and  the  city  was  saved;  this 
was  the  last  effort,  and  the  English  withdrew  from 
the  siege.  The  English  soldiers  said  they  never 
wanted  to  fight  women  again.  This  part  of  the  is- 
land has  seen  many  storms  of  foreign  and  domestic 
strife  through  all  past  history.  On  many  of  the  hills 
are  the  ruins  of  watch  towers,  with  strong  walls  en- 
closing one  to  five  acres,  in  to  which  the  sheep  and 
cattle  were  driven  at  night.  In  time  of  war  or  civil 
commotions  they  could  be  run  in  on  short  notice  from 
the  tower,  and  a  few  resolute  men  could  defend 
the  enclosures  for  a  short  time  against  a  large  force. 
The  sight  of  these  old  ruins  keeps  the  sanguinary 
history  of  the  country  constantly  before  the  mind, 
and  at  times  mars  the  enj-oyment  of  the  traveler. 
The  city  of  two  thousand  years  ago,  the  one  Orom- 


OF   ADDISON    COFFIN.  441 

well  besieged,  is  fast  falling  into  decay.  The  new 
city  is  to  the  west  of  the  old  one,  on  level  ground, 
and  more  modern  in  style.  It  is  (inite  a  commercial 
point,  and  has  little  of  the  old  Irish  aspect  left,  but 
we  saw  a  few  forms  moving  amid  the  throng  that 
seemed  not  of  the  masses;  they  looked  Kke  a  superior 
race  now  nearly  gone.  They  are  the  last  of  the 
chieftains,  kings  and  nobles  of  Ireland,  as  given  in 
song  and  story. 

From  Limerick  we  went  northwest  to  Ennis, 
then  north  to  Athenry,  a  by-way  of  the  orthodox 
route.  It  was  our  intention  to  run  down  to  Galway, 
but  we  found  it  would  make  a  break  in  our  time  table, 
so  we  left  that  point  out.  Gras^  grew  by  the  road 
side,  in  the  fields,  on  the  hills  and  to  the  mountain 
tops,  among  the  rocks,  along  the  streams;  in  fact, 
grew  everywhere,  unless  the  ground  was  in  actual 
cultivation.  In  every  possible  place  fine  cattle,  sheep 
and  hogs  were  seen  grazing  on  the  luxuriant  grass. 
Since  the  great  potato  famine,  a  generation  ago,  more 
live  stock  has  been  grown  and  more  hay  made  than 
previously.  We  visited  a  festive  park  at  Athenry; 
it  was  a  Catholic  feast  day,  and  thousands  of  people 
were  out,  mostly  young  persons,  and  they  were  a 
boisterous,  roaring  concourse.  At  least  one  man  in 
fr>ur  was  drunk,  and  all  were  more  or  less  under  the 
the  infiuence  of  liquor,  and,  sad  to  say,  many  nice, 
beautiful  girls  were  half  intoxicated  and  voluble  in 
talk  and  sonsr. 


442  LIFE    AND    TRAVELS 

AVe  now  turned  our  faces  east  across  the  central 
district  to  Mullingar,  near  the  middle  of  the  island, 
to  a  country  as  beautiful  as  the^finest  blue  grass  re- 
gion of  America;  on  the  wav,  at  Athlone,  on  Lake 
Kee,  we  saw  another  sample  of  Catholic  festivals. 
Lake  Ree  is  the  ^reat  storage  basin  of  the  Shannon 
river,  and  is  a  fine  fishing  and  boating  place.  Many 
thousands  of  people  were  congregated  there,  boat- 
ing, fishing,  drinking,  dancing,  fighting  and  storm- 
mg  about.  The  regular  and  extra  trains  were 
crowded,  and  it  seemed  as  though  half  the  men  were 
drunk.  One  of  them  got  aboard  in  charge  of  a 
seven-year-old  daughter,  who  managed  him  as  though 
he  were  a  pig  tied  to  a  string.  When  the  conductor 
rame  she  handed  him  the  tickets  in  simple,  child- 
like innocence,  and  received  kind  words,  not  only 
from  him,  but  from  all.  To  me  it  was  so  horrid  that  I 
felt  soiTowful  all  the  evening,  thinking  of  that  child's 
sad  fate. 

We  spent  the  night  at  Mullingar,  and  next  morn- 
ing started  to  Sligo,  northwest,  through  the  same  suc- 
cession of  beautiful,  green  hills  and  charming  valleys 
until  we  approached  Sligo,  when  we  met  with  ranges 
of  hills  called  by  the  natives  mountains.  They  ex- 
tend all  along  the  north  coast,  giving  the  country  a 
picturesque  appearance.  These  mountains  are  cov- 
ered with  grass  to  the  summit,  and  constantly  call  to 


OF    ADDISON    COFFIN.  443 

miiid  tlie  contrast  beween  that  country  and  Palestine, 
where  there  is  so  much  desolation.      We  were  now  in 
the  Protestant  portion  of  Ireland;  we  noted  the  dif- 
ference in  an  hour's  run.     The  farms  were  in  better 
order,   houses   more  comfortable,   the   people    better 
dressed,  more  cattle  and  hogs  in  sight,   and  every- 
thing   showed  increased   life,   light  and    animation, 
Sligo,   more  celebrated   by   the  bards  in  story  than 
remarkable  in  histoiy,  is  a  nice,  clean  place,  if  one 
does  not  go  too  far  back  into  the  town,  but  we  found 
our    ride    through    it    very    interesting.     The    two- 
wheeled  jaunting  car,  or  Irish  cart,  attains  its  high- 
est perfection  in  Sligo.      The  driver  faces  forward; 
two  passengers  sit  on  either  side,  back  to  back,  look- 
ing toward  the  sides  of  the  road.     The  seats  are  di- 
rectly over  the  wheels,  the  footboard  a  little  lower 
than  the  hub  and  a  foot  wide.     If  a  drunken  man  falls 
off,  he  pitches  away  from  the  cart,  and  is  out  of  dan- 
ger of  horses  or  wheels;  it  looks  as  though  the  cart 
and  the  diimken    men  were  made  for  each    other. 
For  sober  people  it  is  jolly  riding  ten  miles  an  hour 
over  rough,  stony  roads,  with  a  shrewd,  quick-witted 
Irish  driver,  who  is  expert  in  his  wild  driving.     If 
you  are  thrown  from  the  seat,  there  is  but  two  feet 
to  fall,  and  it  is  quickly  over  and  you  remount  with 
little  effort.     If  you  ever  go  to  Ireland  do  not  fail 
to  take  a  ride  of  several  miles  in  a  jaunting  car,  over 
a  mountain  road,  for  it  is  grand. 


444  LIFE    AND    TRAVELS 

On  our  road  from  Sligo  to  Enniskillen  and  Lon- 
donderrj'  we  passed  some  rural  scenes  of  mingled 
valley,  mountain,  hill  and  plain  that  would  bring  a 
golden  harvest  to  an  artist  who  could  reproduce  them 
on  canvas  and  make  them  true  to  nature.  Ennis- 
killen is  a  grand  old  town,  with  much  of  the  past  great- 
ness clinging  to  its  old  walls,  and  among  the 
watch  towers  on  the  surrounding  hills.  It  is  one 
of  the  places  which  has  seen  some  stormy  history 
in  the  early  Hebrew  colonization,  six  to  seven  hun- 
dred years  before  our  era.  Londonderrv,  though  lu 
old  place,  has  much  of  modern  life;  all  the  new  por- 
tion is  grr  atly  so.  From  that  point  we  went  to  Port- 
stewarts,  and  there  took  an  electric  car  for  the  great 
wonder,  the  Giant's  Causeway;  we  were  very  for- 
tunate in  having  a  bright,  clear  day,  and  the  tide  was 
out.  At  iirst  we  were  disappointed  in  not  finding 
things  looking  like  the  pictures  in  the  school  books, 
but  after  we  went  down  the  narrow,  winding  path 
by  the  cliff,  and  walked  out  on  the  strange  fonna- 
tion  and  viewed  the  neighboring  rocks,  the  striking 
and  wonderful  features  began  to  appear,  and  the 
longer  we  looked  the  more  interesting  it  became. 
There  are  three  causeways;  the  larger  one  covers 
about  two  acres,  extending  out  into  the  sea  400  feet. 
-Its  highest  i)oint  is  50  feet,  and  it  slopes  with  an  easy 
grade,  terminating  abru})tly  in  the  water.      The  blocks 


OF    ADDISON    COFFIN.  445 

are  two  to  six  feet,  twelve  to  twenty  inches  in  diam- 
eter, all  of  them  three  to  seven-sided,  concave  at  one 
end  and  convex  at  the  other,  iitting  as  if  made  by 
hand  as  they  stand  on  each  other.     Each  block  seems 
to  have  been  made  especially  for  its  place.     But  the 
most  astonishing  things  of  all  are  the  eight-sided  key 
stones,  which  are  pnt  in  at  irregular  intervals,  seem- 
ingly as  a  necessity  to  keep  up  the  regular  adjust- 
ment of  the  other  blocks.     Everything  seems  to  have 
been  planned  and   completed  with  geometrical  pre- 
cision, and  we  were  slow  to  receive  the  truth,  that 
it  is  the  result  of  crystalization.      It  is  little  wonder 
that  it  was  believed  to  be  the  work  of  a  lost  race 
of  giants,  for  scattered  along  each  side  are  immense 
bowlder  nodules  of  cinder  and  slag,  just  like  we  see 
at  iron  furnaces,  and  there  are  great  heaps  of  broken 
rock  against  the  foot  of  the  cliff,  as  if  prepared  for 
smelting  and  molding.     In  many  places  in  the  cliff 
and  near  the  water  line  there  are  rudimentary  blocks 
mixed  in  with  slag.     It  is  probable  that  the  whole 
headland  is  a  mass  of  crystals  below  the  water  line, 
and  possibly  it  is  all  made  of  the  same  material  and 
only  covered  with  earth.     Aside  from  the  causeway, 
the  vicinity  is  interesting.     There  are  wild,  rugged, 
projecting  headlands,  their  perpendicular  sides  broken 
and  wrecked  by  the  shock  of  the  great  waves,  or  worn 
into  caves  and  hollow  channels,  in  which  the  sea  roars 


446  LIFE    AND    TRAVELS 

and  thunders  in  tones  of  grand  music  to  the  ear  which 
loves  the  terrible.  From  the  top  there  is  a  magnifi- 
cent view  inland  over  a  rolling  country,  all  under 
cultivation  or  in  grass.  Out  to  sea  there  are  always 
steamers  or  sailing  vessels  in  sight,  with  sea  fowl 
wheeling  above  and  below,  and  screaming  on  the 
wind.  One  can  stand  long  amid  the  surroundings 
taking  in  the  picture,  which  vdll  be  one  of  the  bright 
ones  that  we  lay  away  to  keep,  ^o  American  visit- 
ing Ireland  should  miss  seeing  the  causeway,  but  he 
should  be  wary  of  employing  the  officious  guide,  keej) 
clear  of  hotel  runners,  use  the  carriage  road  from 
the  station,  and  at  the  top  of  the  hill  take  path  down 
the  cliff  and  be  his  own  guide. 

From  the  causeway  we  turned  south  to  Lake 
Xeagh  (nuf),  then  east  to  Carrickfergus,  a  celebrated 
prehistoric  place,  then  southwest  up  the  bay  of  Bel- 
fast. On  arriving  in  the  city,  we  found  a  train  ready 
to  start  to  the  old  maternal  home,  near  Balynalinch, 
which  we  boarded,  and  were  landed  in  the  town  just 
before  night.  The  consciousness  of  being  so  near  the 
highest  aspiration  of  childhood,  to  see  the  home  of  my 
Irish  ancestors,  and  of  the  lost  Albanoids,  was  so  all- 
absorbing  that  I  could  not  sleep.  During  the  night 
I  recalled  the  history  of  my  race,  and  tried  to  fix  in 
mind  the  relative  locations  in  our  family  history,  the 
better  to  find  them  the  next  day.      Morning    came 


OF    ADDISON    COFFIN.  447 

with  a  steady  rainfall  that  was  sadly  disappointing, 
but  there  was  a  compensating  siirpnse,  for  as  I  sat 
looking  out  of  the  window,  one-hoi'se  cart^  came  driv- 
ing by  and  stopping  out  in  an  open  square  not  far 
away.  Each  cart  contained  four,  nicely-dressed  hogs, 
weighino-  about  150  pounds.  Then  came  other  carts 
with  four  to  six  live  sheep  standing  up  in  them, 
looking  fat  and  clean.  These  were  followed  with 
more  carts,  with  six  to  twelve  nice,  white  pigs,  all 
squealing  and  wriggling  in  a  lively  chorus.  Then 
came  companies  of  ten  to  twelve  sheep  driven  slowly 
along;  then  five  to  twenty  head  of  all  kinds  of  cattle. 
All  this  was  decidedly  interesting.  Upon  inquiring 
of  our  hostess  what  the  demonstration  signified,  we 
were  told  it  was  the  monthly  fair  for  the  county 
(County  Down),  and  that  it  always  took  place,  rain  or 
shine,  and  that  what  we  saw  here  was  a  sample  of 
all  such  fairs  on  the  island.  I  borrowed  an  umbrella 
and  went  through  the  grounds  among  the  hundreds, 
who,  in  spite  of  the  rain,  were  there  to  buy  or  sell. 
It  was  interestine'  to  see  and  hear  the  shrewd,  sharp 
trading  and  sallies  of  Irish  wit,  that  came  as  natural 
as  the  breath.  As  in  other ,  places,  the  women  were 
the  sharpest  and  most  persistent  traders.  Their 
adroit  maneuvering  showed  them,  in  many  cases,  to 
be  far  ahead  of  the  whisky-drinking,  tobacco-smok- 
ing men.     Tlie  cattle  and  sheep  were  equal   to  the 


448  LIFE    AND    '1  RAVELS 

best  in  America,  and  the  pigs  were  tlie  finest  I  had 
ever  seen.  There  was  a  new  industry,  which  seemed 
second  to  none  in  importance — the  sale  of  second- 
hand clothing  from  America,  with  some  from  other 
countries.  There  was  a  large  cpiantitj  on  hand,  and 
much  of  it  was  sold.  Most  of  it  was  good,  and  was 
bought  very  cheap.  This  is  succeeding  well,  and 
enables  many  people  to  dress  comfortably  at  small 
cost.  In  this  connection  it  is  interesting  to  know 
of  the  many  presents  of  clothing  that  are  sent  from 
America  to  Ireland  by  Irish- Americans;  when  a  na- 
tive re-visit8  his  home  he  always  take-^  presents  to  the 
''Old  Folks."  In  my  journey  through  the  country 
I  inquired  of  hundreds  of  grandfathers  and  grand- 
mothers amonp-  all  classes,  and  I  did  not  find  one 
person  who  had  not  relatives  in  America;  there  was 
not  a  single  grandfather  who  had  not  more  grand- 
(ihildren  in  America  than  in  Ireland  or  any  other 
country.  Statistical  home  rulers  say  there  are  more 
Irishmen,  Irish  people,  in  America  than  in  Ireland. 
Xearly  every  boy  and  girl  grows  up  with  the  am- 
bition to  go  to  America  some  day.  This  spirit  of 
emigration  is  disastrous  to  the  business  of  the  coun- 
try, for  no  one  seems  to  be  settled  for  life.  I  can 
say  that  I  have  never  been  in  any  corner  of  the  earth 
but  there  was  Irish  blood  there. 

The  second   morning  was  bright  and    warm;   I 


OF    ADDISON    COFFIN.  449 

was  up  at  daylight  and  away  across  the  hills  to  find 
the  lirst  traditional  landniarii  of  my  ancestors — the 
old  burial  gix)und  and  ruined  church.  It  was  easily 
found,  on  a  hill  top  a  mile  from  town,  and  covered 
about  two  acres.  It  was  still  enclosed  by  a  portion 
of  the  primitive  wall,  and  a  })art  of  the  old  temi)le 
wall  l)uilt  1600  years  ago,  and  some  of  the  tomb  stones 
are  still  standing.  Xear  by  I  located  the  xVlbanoid 
village  that  existed  2600  years  ago,  and  was  one  of 
the  prosperous  communities.  Nothing  now  remains 
but  fragments  of  slate  and  building  stones.  Four 
miles  away  I  found  the  well-defined  outlines  of  a 
small  city,  whose  history  goes  far  back  into  prehis- 
toric times,  though  well  rec^orded  in  Albanoid  tradi- 
tion. It  was  counted  a  strong  city  when  the  first 
Hebrew  emigrants  came  to  Ireland,  900  B.  C.  This 
temple  was  built  and  burial  ground  enclosed  at  least 
2500  years  before  Christ,  but  how  long  the  Alba- 
noids  had  been  there  before  it  was'  built,  tradition 
does  not  tell.  This  much  is  evident:  their  civiliza- 
tion and  arts  were  in  advance  of  the  Hebrews  in  the 
days  of  Solomon.  In  their  tradition  they  claim  to 
have  come  to  Ireland  from  the  West,  and  describe 
their  original  home  as  being  identical  with  Atlantis, 
the  lost  coMinent  of  the  Atlantic.  Whether  this  is 
a  myth  or  a  true  history,  their  civilization  was  not  Eu- 
ropean,  Asiatic  or  Egyptian  in  its  ongin.      Modern 


450  LIFE    AND    TRAVELS 

or  Christian  tradition  says  that  St.  Patrick  tiiraed 
the  old  "Heathen"  temple  into  a  Christian  church, 
which  was  used  for  many  centuries. 

I  will  he  pardoned  if  I  say  that  my  enthusiasni 
reached  the  highest  point  when  I  really  found  my- 
self standing  amid  the  sTaves  of  my  lost  ancestors, 
for  with  my  glass  I  located  the  two  beacon  hills,  from 
whose  tops  in  ages  gone  had  flashed  out  the  signal 
lights  by  night  and  pillars  of  smoke  by  day,  as  signs 
of  danger,  at  the  approach  of  an  enemy  or  coming 
storm,  ^ot  far  to  the  soutliAvest  stood  the  great 
watch  tower  to  which  the  villagers  retired  as  their 
stronghold  in  time  of  trouble,  as  well  as  to  the  tem- 
ple and  its  surrounding  walls.  As  in  the  ages  past., 
the  beautiful  hills  Avere  still  clothed  in  grass,  and 
thousands  of  cattle,  sheep  and  hogs  were  gTazing, 
while  the  smoke  was  ascending  from  the  stone  chim- 
neys of  hundreds  of  cottages,  showing  that  human- 
ity, with  all  its  hopes  and  fears,  was  still  there.  But 
I  was  carried  away  in  a  vision  of  the  past  that  was 
overwhelming  in  its  revelations,  for  once  again  the 
veil  of  "second  sight"  was  drawn  aside,  and  the  hur- 
rying scenes  of  thousands  of  years  appeared  before 
me.  All  the  fearful  past  was  there  in  living  light, 
which  came  rolling  down  to  my  very  feet,  and  was 
too  overpowering  for  my  mind,  strength  and  spirit. 
I  had  to  crv  to  God  to  close  tlie  vision;  thouah  the 


OF    ADDISON    COFFIN.  451 

fiitniv  niitiiit  liave  l)een  revealed,  I  was  too  weak  to 
bear  it,  nor  do  1  (•ra^'e  to  know,  for  it  will  go  down 
to  its  predestined  end.  My  race  may  vanish,  but 
the  Lord  will  call  his  chosen  Israel  from  Ireland,  as 
well  as  from  the  whole  earth,  in  the  final  restitution. 
When  that  \^sion  closed,  it  seemed  again  that 
my  life  work  was  done,  my  highest  hopes  of  earth 
had  been  realized,  and  my  heart  seemed  satisfied. 
The  remainder  of  the  day  was  spent  in  walking  over 
the  hills  and  in  visiting  the  old  stone  house  in  which 
my  grandmother  was  born.  It  had  been  standing 
200  years,  and  it  looked  as  though  it  would  stand  for 
many  centuries  more.  It  was  built,  like  many  othei^s, 
of  solid  masonry  and  a  tile  roof,  which  earthquakes 
alone  will  destroy.  But  now  as  I  walked  the  hills  I 
saw  a  double  vision,  as  they  were,  and  as  they  had 
been;  each  vision  was  alike  real.  The  object  of  my 
visit  to  Ireland  now  seemed  accomplished;  I  went 
once  more  to  the  old  ruin,  and  as  I  stood  in  the  midst 
of  the  burial  gi\)und  a  feeling  of  inexpressible  sad- 
ness came  over  me.  I  was  probably  the  last  of  the 
now  nearly  extinct  race  who  would  ever  see,  or  care 
to  see,  that  silent  and  lone  spot,  and  I  turned  away 
with  a  strange  mingling  of  sorrow  and  joy,  sorrow- 
ful at  thought  of  the  lost  race,  joyful  that  I  had  been 
permitted  to  stand  at  last  among  their  graves. 

Later  on  in  the  dav  I  was  slowh'  retumina"  to 


452  LIFE    A^D    TRAVELS 

the  town,  full  of  deep  tlioiiglit,  when  I  was  suddenly 
startled  by  a  new  phase  in  experience.  At  the  foot 
of  the  hill,  at  a  turn  in  the  broad  highway,  I  found 
myself  surrounded  by  eighty-two  large  fox  hounds, 
trotting  along  the  road.  One  huge  fellow^  looked 
nie  in  the  face  with  a  friendly  bow-wow  and  wag- 
to  the  tail,  which  removed  my  fear  of  danger;  at  the 
same  time  a  much  be-buttoned  and  uniformed  keeper 
spoke,  saying  there  was  no  danger  from  them.  I 
had  seen  droves  of  all  kinds  of  domestic  animals, 
geese,  ducks,  turkeys  and  cranes,  but  not  dogs,  so 
I  was  curious  to  know  something  of  the  new  indus- 
try, and  learned  that  some  of  the  landed  gentry  were 
going  to  have  a  grand  fox  hunt  in  a  few  days,  on 
an  estate  not  far  away,  and  the  hounds  were  being 
sent  on  in  advance,  to  be  in  running  trim  by  the  day 
of  the  hunt.  I  wanted  to  know  how  much  it  would 
cost  to  keep  one  of  those  dogs,  and  was  told  as  much 
as  would  board  and  clothe  an  ordinary  man.  Upon 
returning  into  the  town,  I  made  inquiry  as  to  the  num- 
ber of  children  who  lacked  bread  and  clothing,  and 
the  landlady  said  there  were  at  least  two  hundred. 
This  was  an  item  among  many  others  that  I  noted 
through  all  my  travels,  in .  contrasting  the  two  ex- 
tremes in  the  world  of  humanity. 

We  left  Balynalinch  in  the  afternoon  for  Belfast 
to  take  steamer  for  Scotland.      While    awaiting    the 


OF    ADDISON    COFFIN.  453 

steamer,  I  gained  additional  information  from  the 
Historical  Society,  which  is  making  interesting  dis- 
coveries in  the  seemingly-lost  history  of  Ireland. 
Among  the  most  so,  is  the  authentic  account  of  the 
early  Hebrew  immigration,  the  coming  of  the  prophet 
Jeremiah  when  he  fled  from  his  rebellious  brethren 
in  Egypt  with  two  of  the  king's  daughters,  the  ark  of 
the  covenant,  the  coronation  stone,  and  other  sacred 
things.  They,  also,  affirmed  the  authenticity  of  the 
Milesian  tablets,  and  many  lost  records,  all  of  which 
show  Ireland,  when  fully  understood,  to  be  a  most 
important  historical  country,  but  in  a  biography  like 
this,  such  things  are  not  in  place. 

We  took  the  steamer  for  Scotland,  and  crossed 
during  the  night,  landing  near  Glasgow.  Early  next 
moraing  v\'e  went  by  rail  to  Bonnie  Loch  Lomond, 
then  took  steamer  for  the  head  of  the  lake.  It  was 
a  splendid  ride  and  the  scenery  surpassed  Geneva, 
Como,  Or  any  other  lake  that  we  had  seen  on  the 
continent.  The  hills  on  either  side  are  almost  moun- 
tains, and  come  to  the  water's  edge  or  look  down  on 
it  from  rugged  cliifs  and  bold  headlands,  giving  a 
touch  of  dark,  romantic  grandeur  to  many  of  its 
shadowy  ravines.  There  are  numerous  islands  and 
narrow  passages,  which  are  constantly  adding  new 
chamis  to  the  seenery.  We  stopped  a  day  at  the 
head  of  the  lake,  and  walked  several  miles  up  the 

29 


454  LIFE    AND    TRAVELS 

roaring,  rocky  river  that  comes  down  through  the 
mountains.  We  passed  a  succession  of  falls,  up  which 
the  mountain  trout  were  leaping,  and  at  one  place 
they  would  clear  a  fall  of  live  feet  with  a  single  spring. 
Most  of  them  made  it  the  first  effort,  others  had  to 
try  the  second  and  third  time.  It  was  a  beautiful 
scene,  for  the  glen  was  shady,  deep  and  dark,  hid 
away  among  the  hills.  Ben  Lamond  is  almost  a 
mountain,  as  he  stands  among  the  smaller  hills  in  bold 
relief,  calling  up  much  of  the  le,2:ends  and  songs  of 
the  past,  such  as,  "The  sun  has  gane  down  o'er  the 
loftv  Ben  Lomond,''  or  "'The  Campbells  are  coming 
from  Ben  Loch  Lomand,"  etc.,  etc.  These  in  turn 
brought  to  mind  incidents  in  Scottish  history  and  tra- 
dition, which  furnLshed  food  for  thouglit  as  well  as 
delight  for  the  eye. 

We  returned  to  the  lower  end  and  took  rail  for 
Dundee,  on  the  east  coast,  by  way  of  Sterling,  Dun- 
blain  and  Perth,  through  a  fine,  green  country,  over 
and  among  rolling  hills  and  beautiful  meadows,  equal 
to  the  rural  scenes  in  England,  all  in  a  high  state  of 
cultivation.  From  Dundee  we  traveled  over  the  cel- 
ebrated Tay  railroad,  one  of  the  wonders  of  engineer- 
ing skill.  It  crosses  the  Firth,  and  was  the  scene 
of  a  fearful  disaster  a  few  years  ago,  when  a  span 
of  the  bridge  fell  with  a  passenger  train,  and  all  were 
lost.     I  could  not, realize  the  height  of  the  bridge 


OF   ADDISON    COFFIN.  455 

until  I  saw  a  three-masted,  ship  sail  under  it.  It  was 
a  grand,  but  rather  airy,  ride  over  the  broad  expanse 
of  water.  We  continued  southward  through  a  charm- 
ing country,  and  came  to  Edinburgh,  where  we 
crossed  the  last  and  greatest  achievement  in  bridge 
building  over  the  Firth  of  Forth.  It  is  a  combination 
between  the  cantilever  and  suspension  bridge,  the 
longest  and  highest  of  the  kind  in  the  world.  The 
going  over  these  two  bridges  filled  the  measure  of 
our  ambition  in  one  direction:  we  had  passed  through 
the  two  longest  tunnels,  the  Mt.  Cenis  and  St.  Goth- 
ard's,  and  now  the  two  greatest  railroad  bridges ;  while 
at  Port  Costo,  Cal.,  had  floated  on  the  largest  Jerry- 
boat,  or  boat  of  any  kind,  ever  built  by  man. 

The  stop  in  Edinburgh  was  full  of  interest;  we 
were  in  motion  most  of  the  time,  riding,  walking  and 
looking  at  the  noted  historic  places  which  have  figured 
for  so  many  centuries.  The  wonderful  castle  of 
Edinburgh  was  considered  almost  impregnable  until 
the  invention  of  heavy  guns,  now  its  castles  and 
towers  would  not  stand  a  single  day's  cannonade 
from  the  top  of  Arthur's  seat.  I  was  especially  glad 
to  see  the  almost  forgotten  grave  of  «Iohn  Knox. 
Everybody  could  tell  where  the  house  of  John  Knox 
was,  but  not  one  in  ten  knew  where  he  was  l)uried. 
It  was  too  simple  a  thing  for  curiosity,  no  chance  to 
collect  a  sixpence  for  showing  it,  so  it  is  generally 


456  LIFE    AND    TKAVKLS 

unknown.  It  is  marked  by  a  bronze  tablet  a  foot 
square,  which  is  inserted  in  the  pavement  in  front 
of  his  old  church,  and  carts  drive  over  it  without  a 
thought  of  who  is  buried  there. 

AVe  ^vent  by  rail  from  Edinburgh  to  Annan,  near 
the  celebrated  city  of  Gretna  Green,  over  the  border, 
to  see  the  largest  nursery  in  Scotland,  owned  by  Mr. 
Holms.  John  Van  Lindley  had  met  the  proprietor 
in  America,  and  he  gave  us  a  cordial  welcome  to  his 
home,  and  a  very  pleasant  day  w^as  spent  in  rambling 
over  his  extensiA^e  grounds.  He  had  just  returned 
from  a  business  trip  to  the  United  States,  and  could 
talk  of  home  events.  Adjoining  his  grounds  w^as  the 
ruins  of  one  of  the  strongholds  of  Robert  Bruce, 
and  a  secret  passage  had  recently  been  discovered 
by  which  the  garrison  could  go  down  to  the  river 
under  ground,  both  for  water  and  to  escape.  From 
Annan  we  crossed  the  country  to  the  eastern  coast 
at  l^ewT'astle,  and  from  there  returned  to  London  by 
way  of  York,  arriving  August  24th,  1892. 

Our  work  was  done,  our  travels  were  ended;  we 
had  finished  our  program  on  time,  had  been  in  all 
the  countnes  and  capitals  of  Europe,  had  seen  and 
accomplished  more  than  ordinary  tourists,  had  es- 
capes! from  all  danger,  seen  and  unseen.  We  had 
met  with  but  few  Ictsses  or  crosses.  V)ut  our  minds  were 
growing  weary  o^f  the   long  strain   and   tension   and 


OF    ADDISON    COFFIN.  457 

needed  rest.  John  Van  Lindley  wanted  to  see  his 
wife  and  little  ones,  and  be  with  his  extensive  fall 
work  in  his  nursery.  As  i  was  cut  off  from  my  trip 
to  the  Caspian,  Persia  and  Babylon  by  the  cholera, 
1  too  was  readv  for  home.  We  spent  a  few  days  in 
London  with  our  kind  friends,  John  E.  Watts  and 
family,  then  bought  tickets  for  New  York  by  steamer 
''Ethiopia,"  Anchor  line,  and  proceeded  to  Glasgow, 
where  we  went  aboard  and  started  September  1st, 
1892,  at  5  p.  m.  The  passage  down  the  Clyde  amid 
the  long  line  of  ship  yai-ds  was  most  entertaining. 
The  steamer  was  towed  by  two  powerful  tugs,  one  in 
front  and  the  other  astern.  In  rounding  the  bends 
and  points  on  the  river,  it  was  amazing  to  see  the 
precision  with  which,  the  signals  were  given,  and  the 
promptness  with  which  they  wei'e  heeded  and  exe- 
cuted by  the  tugs,  each  one  pulling  to  an  opposite 
point  from  the  other,  thus  swinging  the  great  ship 
as  if  revolving  on  a  pivot.  It  was  a  display  of  per- 
fect marine  science  and  skill.  It  was  refreshing  to 
look  into  the  bronzed,  but  noble,  honest  faces  of  the 
clear-eyed,  cool-headed  engineers  and  seamen,  who 
seemed  to  impart  life  and  intelligence  to  the  crafts 
beneath  their  feet.  We  crossed  the  channel  through 
the  night,  and  ran  down  the  Irish  coast  to  Movill, 
to  take  on  passengers  coming  up  the  bay  from  Lon- 
donderry, in  small  coasting  steamers.      At  3  p.  m.  the 


458  LIFE    AND    TRAVELS 

second  of  September,  we  sailed  out  c»f  the  bay  with 
over  four  hundred  passengers  headed  for  America. 
Soon  after  the  last  cape  disappeared,  a  strong  wind 
began  to  blow,  and  incre^ised  steadilv  all  night,  ^ext 
morning  a  heavy  sea  was  running,  and  the  ship  rolled 
and  plunged  so  violently  that  walkini>:  on  deck  was 
very  difficult  for  landsmen.  All  day  the  gale  in- 
creased, and  the  second  night  was  dark,  cold  and 
rainy,  so  that  few  passengers  ventureil  out.  On  the 
morning  of  the  third  day  the  gale  grew  worse,  and 
became  a  regular  storm;  many  were  quite  seasick, 
the  worst  sickness  that  men  ever  have,  but  the  least 
dangerous.  During  the  day  the  ship  made  slow 
headway  against  the  violence  of  the  storm.  All  hope 
of  a  pleasant  voyage  was  given  up,  and  the  passen- 
gers began  to  settle  down  to  the  situation,  and  to 
cast  about  for  some  way  to  pass  the  time;  but  at  7 
p.  m.  all  were  suddenly  alarmed  by  the  engine  stop- 
ping and  the  ship  falling  helplessly  into  the  trough 
and  rolling  violently.  Great  anxiety  seized  the  pas- 
sengers; each  one  wanted  to  know  the  cause,  the  ex- 
tent of  the  accident,  and  the  possible  danger.  Word 
soon  came  that  the  main  shaft  of  the  propellor  had 
given  way,  and  it  would  take  several  hours  to  repair 
it.  The  ship  was  unmanageable,  and  began  drifting 
before  the  wind.  The  rocking  and  plunging  of  the 
sea  was  so  great  that  standing  or  walking  was  very 
difficult:  signs  of  alarm  were  seen  on  everv  face. 


OF    ADDISON    COFFIN. 


459 


That  was  a  terrible  night  on  those  suffering 
with  seasickness,  and  one  of  anxiety  to  those  who  were 
well.  I  had  no  sickness  during  the  whole  voy- 
age and  was  able  to  be  out  all  the  time,  taking  note 
of  what  passed.  I  could  stand  at  the  stern  post  an 
hour  at  a  time  and  look  out  over  the  grandly  sublime 
and  terrible  surroundings.  When  the  ship  was 
thrown  aloft  on  the  crest  of  the  great  swells,  the 
eye  could  take  in  the  perfect  scene  for  miles  around. 
A  landsman  has  no  language  to  describe  it.  Indeed, 
it  would  require  something  beyond  words  to  convey 
an  intelligent  idea  of  such  a  spectacle,  but  this  can 
be  said — everything  on  earth  grows  small  when  com- 
pared with  a  first-class  storm  at  sea. 

At  10  a.  m.  on  the  4th,  the  glad  sound  of  the 
low  boom  of  the  engine  in  motion  sent  a  thrill  of  joy 
through  the  hearts  of  all,  and  the  ship  came  around 
and  once  more  headed  westward.  We  had  drifted 
thirty-tw^o  miles  eastward,  but  were  in  the  lane  of 
the  steamers  on  the  Glasgow  route.  Though  the 
storm  still  raged  and  we  were  in  a  rough  sea,  we 
were  glad  to  be  in  motion  and  feel  the  ship  under 
control.  But,  alas!  in  a  short  time  the  shaft  again 
gave  way,  and  a  second  time  we  were  at  the  mercy 
of  the  waves.  To  add  to  the  gloom  and  sadness,  it 
was  soon  known  that  the  main  shaft  was  broken,  and 
it  would  take  many  hours,   perhaps  days,   to  repair 


460  LIFE    AND    TRAVELS 

it.  It  was  now  impossible  for  many  to  suppress  fear 
or  "conceal  terror.  Pale,  sick  faces  looked  up  with 
sad,  imploring  eyes,  yet  the  lips  were  closed;  mothers 
nestled  their  little  ones;  stout-hearted  men,  who  had 
hitherto  looked  brave  and  reliant,  showed  signs  of 
nervousness  and  fear,  though  they  seldom  spoke. 
The  morning"  of  the  5th  came  with  the  same  dark, 
stormy  sea,  slowly  drifting  us  helplessly  away,  this 
time  out  of  the  lane,  where  we  might  not  be  found 
for  many  days,  if  succor  was  sent  from  either  end  of 
the  line.  During  the  afternoon  the  storm  increased, 
and  the  night  came  on  dark  and  terrible,  filling  the 
bravest  hearts  with  fear  for  the  unseen  horrors  that 
seemed  to  close  around  us  with  the  darkness.  It  was 
impossible  to  walk  or  stand  up  without  holding  fast 
to  some  support.  Little  children  could  not  lie  safely 
in  their  bunks  w^ithout  beine^  held;  even  men  could 
not  lie  still  in  their  berths  in  the  bow  and  stern, 
where  the  tossing  was  most  severe.  The  mothers, 
among  the  emigrants,  sat  down  on  the  floor  and  held 
their  children  across  their  laps  to  prevent  them  from 
being  thrown  down.  There  w^ere  several  ladies 
aboard  who  suddenly  developed  into  grand.  Chris- 
tian characters.  They  went  among  the  emigrants 
and  encouraged  the  mothers  who  had  little  children 
to  care  for,  and  whose  strens-th  was  failing  and  faith 
almost  gone.      Where  least  expected,  tliere  were  scenes 


OF    ADDISON    COFFIN.  461 

of  sublime  trust  and  Christian  heroism,  as  well  as 
abject  fright  and  despair.  One  picture,  the  grandest 
of  them  all,  was  a  middle-aged  mother  with  four 
children.  The  infant  was  bound  to  her  breast  se- 
curely with  a  shawl,  so  that  in  death  tl^ey  would  not 
be  parted.  The  two  next  older  ones  were  lying  on 
either  side,  with  their  heads  in  her  lap,  holding  tightly 
to  her,  and  she  to  them.  With  tears  slowly  falling, 
she  was  gazing  into  their  little,  upturned  faces,  while 
bv  her  side  a  girl  probablv  eight  or  ten  years  old 
was  clinging  to  her  arm  and  looking  at  her  mother, 
saying:  "Manuna,  don't  cry;  you  know  the  Lord  will 
not  let  you  drown.  He  is  too  good  for  that ;  you  know 
He  won't.  Now  do  not  cry,  mamma."  T'here  was  a 
supernatural,  yes,  a  divine  light,  in  those  childish 
eyes,  and  her  face  was  like  the  face  of  an  angel.  I 
felt  in  my  heart,  and  said :  'No  ship  will  sink  with  such 
faith  and  innocence  aboard.  There  were  many  other 
touching  scenes  among  the  seemingly  poor  and  lowly, 
giving  evidence  of  true.  Christian  faith  that  put  to 
shame  the  contemptible  cowai-dice  of  the  wide- 
mouthed  unbeliever  when  he  found  himself  near  to 
almost  certain  death.  Still  another  incident  will  be 
in  place.  In  a  room  amidships  wavS  a  lady  with  two 
bright  little  children,  four  and  six  years  old.  They 
had  been  confined  to  the  room  and  in  the  ])unk  most 
of  the  time  by  the  storm,  and  the  mother  had  shed 


462  LIFE    AND    TRAVELS 

silent  tears  while  watching  her  children,  who  at  last 
fell  into  a  qniet  sleep.  When  they  awoke  they  looked 
lip  into  the  mother's  face  and  began  to  sing  a  child- 
like, cradle^  scmg.  I  had  not  slept  for  two  days  and 
nights,  and  was  alive  to  all  that  was  transpiring. 
When  I  heard  the  scmg  of  the  children  it  seemed 
like  the  voice  of  angels  from  heaven  telling  me  that 
all  was  well — in  spite  of  the  storm  and  the  dark  waves 
around  us  we  were  safe. 

During  all  this  time  brave  men — the  engineers 
and  assistants — were  down  in  the  hold  of  the  ship 
working  with  tireless  arms  and  sleepless  eyes  on  the 
broken  shaft.  Steel  bolts  had  to  be  drilled  and  cut 
out,  great  iron  bars  and  plates  must  be  removed  be- 
fore the  work  could  be  done.  AVhile  others  w^ere  suf- 
fering with  terror  or  ccmrageously  awaiting  the  end, 
I  was,  part  of  the  time,  quietly  but  eagerly  listening 
to  the  whir  of  the  drill,  the  heavy  thud  of  the  maul 
and  the  sharp,  quick  stroke  of  the  hammer  on  the 
chisel^  which  sounds  came  up  a  ventilating  pipe  ^dth 
the  distinctness  of  a  telephone.  In  this  way  I  knew 
the  extent  of  the  damage,  the  difficulty  to  overcome, 
and  the  extreme  danger  we  were  in  if  the  cargo  should 
shift  its  place.  In  the  depressed  and  excited  condi- 
tion of  many  of  the  passengers,  it  would  have  been 
disastrous  for  them  to  have  known  what  the  pipe  was 
telling  me,  for  it  would  have  caused  a  panic  that 
could  not  be  controlled. 


OF   ADDISON    COFFIN.  463 

About  3  a.  m.  on  the  6tli,  I  went  on  deck  to  see 
if  there  was  any  prospect  of  the  storm  abating. 
Everything  aronnd  was  awe-inspiring,  jet  grand;  we 
were  wallowing  in  the  trough  of  the  waves  and  roll- 
ing so  that  the  deck  would  almost  stand  perpendicu- 
lar, and  I  seemed  to  be  hanging  against  a  wall  instead 
of  standing  on  my  feet.  Twice  it  seemed  impossible 
for  the  vessel  to  right  itself  when  struck  by  the  heavy 
seas.  A  part  of  the  cargo  was  pig  iron,  which  was 
put  in  the  bottom,  the  bulky  part  on  it.  This  made 
the  center  of  gravity  down  near  the  keel,  so  when 
the  vessel  was  careened  and  began  to  go  down  the 
keel  sank  the  fastest  and  righted  the  ship  every  time, 
and  this  it  was  that  saved  us.  But  it  was  trying  on 
the  nerves  to  st>aiid  on  the  deck  under  such  circum- 
stances aud  see  death,  as  it  were,  at  arm's-length  and 
coming  right  in.  Heart,  nerves,  faith  and  courage 
have  to  be  well  drilled,  or  nature  will  recoil  under 
such  circumstances.  At  the  end  of  two  hours  the 
wind  began  to  slacken  and  I  could  stand  on  deck,  and 
the  shock  of  the  waves  was  less  violent.  By  6  a.  m. 
the  woather  had  so  moderated  that  the  rolling  of  the 
ship  was  gTeatly  lessened,  and  the  strong  and  active 
could  walk  about.  This  seemed  to  revive  the  hopes 
and  courage  of  all,  especially  the  weaiy  mothers, 
whose  bodily  strength  was  well  nigh  gone.  Soon 
cheerful  conversation  was  heard,  pleasiant  greetings 


464  LIFE    A>iD    TRAVELS 

and  anxious  inquiries  made  for  friends  in  different 
parts  of  the  ship,  and  to  still  more  revive  the  weary 
hearts  and  hands,  a  young  lady  in  the  isfternoon  giave 
some  cheerful  music  on  the  organ,  but  when  she  arose 
from  the  stool  a  sudden  lurch  of  the  ship  threw  her 
down  with  such  force  that  she  was  seriously  injured. 
That  evening  the  table  was  set  and  several  ventured 
out,  as  regular  meals  could  now  be  resumed,  though 
the  racks  had  to  be  kept  on-  the  table  to  make  it  pos- 
sible to  keep  the  plates  and  cups  in  place,  and  with 
the  greatest  precautions  there  were  many  amusing 
mishaps  of  spilt  coffee,  tea,  soup,  gravy,  etc.  etc.,  caus- 
ing much  merriment,  notwithstanding  the  serious 
surroundings. 

The  morning  of  the  7th  was  dark  and  gloomy. 
The  wind  freshened  for  a  few^  hours  and  another 
storm  seemed  near,  but  by  noon  the  clouds  began 
to  break  away,  and  through  the  rifts  broad  streams 
of  sunlight  flashed,  lighting  up  the  waves  with  daz- 
zling brightness.  During  the  afternoon  the  wind 
ceased  and  the  sea  went  rapidly  down;  the  continued 
showers  of  sunlight  were  cheering  and  reviving  to  all. 
The  next  morning  was  dark  and  rainy,  but  the  rain 
soon  ceased  and  the  sunlight  came  out,  and  there  was 
now  a  long,  heavy  roll,  that  was  not  unpleasant  after 
90  much  violence.  The  passengers  came  out  on  deck 
with  pale,  but  ha])py,  faces,  p-lad  to  feel  safe  after 


OF    ADDISON    COFFIN.  465 

die  hcjiirs  of  peril,  aud  ready  for  a  bath  of  wann 
yriiiliiilit.  The  little  children  ran  about  with  totter- 
ingMeps  but  joyous  faces,  happy  to  be  safe  once  more, 
though  weak  from  the  ordeal  they  had  passed  through. 
September  9th  came  in  with  a  beautiful  sunrise, 
and  the  sea  was  almost  calm.  Everybody  came  out 
or  was  carried  out,  to  enjoy  the  beautiful  day,  and 
the  children,  true  to  childhood  and  innocence,  filled 
the  air  with  glad  shouts,  sweet  songs  and  romping 
play.  To  add  to  the  general  joy,  the  captain  an- 
nounced that  the  last  bolt  was  in  place,  and  we  would 
start  in  a  few  hours.  A  glad  cheer  w^ent  over  the 
water;  soon  all  w^as  life  and  joy  where  it  had  been 
fear  and  danger.  At  half  past  nine  the  engine 
throbbed  and  boomed,  the  signal  bell  rang,  and  again 
a  glad  shout  rang  through  the  ship  as  the  regular 
sounds  of  the  engine  were  heard.  There  seemed  to 
be  another  lease  of  life ;  the  children  ran  in  high  glee, 
slapping  their  hands  and  shouting,  "She's  started! 
She's  started  I  Hurrah!  Hurrah!"  and  away  and 
around  they  ran  beyond  control.  In  fact,  no  one 
wanted  them  controlled,  for  they  but  expressed  the 
feelings  of  all  ages.  In  a  few  hours  the  young  people 
began  promenading  and  the  older  ones  to  collect  in 
groups,  talking  in  subdued  tones  or  sitting*  in  silence 
in  the  bright  sunshine,  looking  serene  and  happy. 
As  I  gazed  on  the  beautiful  scene  which  lay  before 


466  LIFE    AND    TRAVELS 

me,  I  could  but  ask:  Who,  of  all  the  hundreds  who 
were  rejoicing  over  their  deliverance,  thought  of  the 
brave  engineers  who  had  toiled  night  and  day  through 
these  hours  of  danger,  re|3airing  the  broken  shaft 
with  unwearied  arm,  steady  hand,  sleepless  eye  and 
noble  souls.  Alas!  I  feared  but  few.  Too  often 
the  self-sacrificing  toilei*s  are  neglected  or  forgotten 
in  this  life,  but  in  that  which  is  to  come,  when  jus- 
tice is  meted  out  to  all,  they  will  wear  the  laurel  crown. 
After  supper  on  the  evening  of  the  9th,  life 
aboard  the  ship  was  deeply  interesting.  The  re- 
bound in  feeling  was  sudden  and  wonderful.  In  the 
dining  room  small  groups  of  six  to  ten  were  gathered 
in  cheerful  conversation;  music  was  heard  overhead, 
which  had  a  more  lofty  and  triumphant  tone  than 
before;  there  was  sweeter  melody  in  the  close  of  each 
rounded  refrain.  The  children's  voices  were  softer 
and  their  faces  brighter  as  they  discussed  their  pic- 
ture books  and  toys.  Among  the  emigrants  there 
were  glad  voices,  glad  songs  and  glad  hearts,  and 
their  children  breathed  sweeter,  higher  music,  for 
it  came  from  hearts  acquainted  with  sorrow  and  pain. 
To  me,  as  I  sat  silently  listening,  or  slowly  walking 
to  and  fro,  the  evidence  of  joy  for  our  deliverance 
more  than  paid  for  all  the  anxiety  and  privation  we 
had  endured,  for  all  had  come  through  the  wiser  and 
better  from  the  trial  of  nerve  and  faith.     The  Chris- 


OF    ADDISON    COFFIN.  467 

tian  was  stronger  than  ever  before;  the  unl>eliever 
hung  his  head  with  a  conscious  shame  for  his  cow- 
ardice in  time  of  danger.  He  had  leai-ned  that  death 
to  him  was  but  a  plunging  into  darkness,  whik^  to 
the  Christian  it  was  passing  from  darkness  to  light. 

We  were  adrift,  after  the  shaft  broke,  eighty- 
eight  hours,  during  which  time  the  engineers  never 
quit  work.  The  emergency  was  so  great  and  so  many 
lives  at  stake  they  could  not,  nor  did  they  want  to, 
rest.  Diuing  the  weary  hours  there  were  many 
amusino;  and  ludicrous  mishaps  constantly  occurring 
that  broke  the  monotony.  Sometimes  a  boastful  pas- 
senger who  tried  to  defy  seasickness,  the  storm,  God 
and  man,  would  be  sent  sprawling  on  deck  or  cabin 
floor,  or  suddenly  collapse  in  his  defiance  of  death, 
and  present  such  abject  terror  in  his  looks  that  all 
were  either  amused  or  disgusted.  There  are  few 
situations  that  will  test  Christian  faith  more  thor- 
oughly than  being  adrift  or  in  a  wreck  in  a  storm 
at  sea.  The  dark  water  has  no  horror  for  the  Chris- 
tian; death  by  drowning  is  quick  and  painless,  and 
to  the  Christian  it  is  but  a  passing  over  to  where  there 
is  no  sea,  no  storm  and  no  more  change,  while  the 
unbeliever  shrinks  back  from  the  dark  gulf,  for  to 
him  there  is  no  light  or  hope  beyond.  This  makes 
him  the  more  contemptible  and  pitiable  when  his  ani- 
mal courage  fails. 


468  LIFE    AND    TRAVELS 

On  the  morning  of  the  11th  a  gladsome  cry  ran 
through  the  ship,  ''Sail,  aho!"  Sail,  aho!"  a:nd  sure 
enough,  not  far  away  the  steamer  ''Circassia"  was 
seen  bearing  down  upon  us  in  majestic  style.  It 
was  a  grand  sight  to  watch  it  rise  and  fall  on  the 
great  swells,  with  signal  flags  flying  in  answer  to  our 
call.  Soon  a  boat  was  lowered  and  pulled  away  to 
the  ship,  for  both  vessels  were  now  lying  to.  All 
eyes  and  all  glasses  were  in  active  use.  The  ''Cir- 
cassia"  was  much  surprised  to  meet  us  in  mid-ocean 
when  we  should  have  been  in  xs^ew  York.  AVe  were 
truly  glad  that  we  were  found,  and  to  hear  from  the 
far-ofl"  world  once  more,  and  were  gratified  to  know 
that  our  situation  and  safety  could  noAv  be  cabled 
to  both  worlds.  At  the  end  of  an  hour  our  boat  re- 
turned, laden  with  needed  supplies,  beef,  pork,  cheese, 
ice,  etc.  The  ships  then  steered  away,  the  ''Circas- 
sia"  for  Glasgow  and  we  for  New  York,  now  1,800 
miles  distant.  AVe  were  forced  to  sail  on  slow  time 
to  avoid  further  accident — ten  miles  an  hour — but 
the  remainder  of  the  voyage  was  very  pleasant  and 
enjoyable;  music,  games  on  deck,  couA^ersation,  dis- 
cussion and  controversy  on  the  politics  on  both  con- 
tinents was  indulged  in.  The  weather  continued 
good,  with  thunderstorms  enough  to  give  us  some 
very  beautiful  sunsets;  we  also  saw  the  singular  phe- 
nomenon of  lightning  strike  the  waters,  once  not  far 


OF    ADDISON   COFFIN.  469 

away.  There  were  several  western  passengers  who 
were  nearly  always  out  in  time  to  see  the  sun  rise 
each  morning,  and  talked  much  of  its  beauty.  We 
were  greatly  astonished  one  day  wh^n  an  18-year- 
old  son  of  one  of  the  first  families  of  New  York 
asked  what  was  meant  by  "Sunrise."  He  had  never 
seen  one,  so  the  next  morning  he  was  called  up  to 
witness  it.  After  looking  at  it  for  a  time  with  won- 
der and  delight,  he  innocently  asked  if  the  sun  always 
rose  that  way. 

In  the  forenoon  of  the  19th  we  were  met  by 
a  pilot  boat,  which  had  been  sent  at  the  proper  time, 
as  our  whereabouts  had  been  cabled  from  Glasgow, 
and,  therefore,  they  knew  just  when  to  meet  us. 
The  morning  of  the  21st  we  sighted  Sandy  Hook, 
and  were  soon  anchored  at  quarantine.  When  the 
health  officer  came  aboard  he  was  surprised  to  find 
every  person  sound  and  well,  as  far  as  sickness  was 
concerned,  rightly  judging  that  if  there  had  been 
germs  of  cholera  aboard  they  would  have  developed 
in  twenty-one  days.  On  the  2  2d  we  landed  once 
more  on  solid  ground,  and  almost  everyone  made 
haste  to  telejoraph  home.  Finding  that  I  was  safe 
and  sound,  I  did  not  rush  home  like  some,  but  came 
through  northern  New  York  and  the  fruit  region 
of  Canada,  and  thence  to  Detroit ;  from  there  to  Rich- 
mond, Indiana,  attended    Indiana  Yearly    Meeting, 

30 


470  LIFE    AND    TRAVELS 

then  started  for  Indianapolis,  but  wa-  captured  by  a 
cousin  on  the  way  and  delayed  for  a  day  and  night. 
1  finally  reached  home,  in  better  health  than  when 
I  left  ten  months  before,  ha^dng  traveled  32,000  miles 
by  railroad  and  steamship,  beside  much  by  carriage, 
horseback,  street  car  and  on  foot. 

At  home  I  found  another  precious  little  grand- 
daughter, a  few^  w^eeks  old,  with  which  the  other  chil- 
dren had  arranged  a  surprise  for  grandpa;  this  was 
nicely  done,  and  all  was  joy  and  rejoicing.  Yet  I 
could  hardly  believe  that  it  was  all  reality,  but  the 
events  of  the  last  ten  months  were  real  and  not  a 
dream.  When  I  met  my  friends  at  Richmond  and 
received  their  warm  congratulations,  it  seemed  past 
belief  that  it  was  I,  instead  of  a  more  gifted  one,  who 
had  accomplished  the  wonderful  journev  under  such 
unlooked-for  conditions.  Among  my  neighbors,  with 
whom  I  had  toiled  and  struggled  through  long  years 
of  privation  and  hardship,  it  was  a  matter  of  sur- 
prise that  I  alone  should  be  the  favored  one  and 
able  to  succeed  in  carrying  out  early  aspirations,  and 
this,  too,  without  wealth  or  outside  influence.  Yea, 
it  was  marvelous  in  our  eyes,  and  we  simply  said,  the 
Lord  helped. 

When  a  few  weeks  later  I  returned  to  Guilford 
College  to  spend  the  winter,  it  was  no  less  an  aston- 
ishment to  mv  old  childhood  associates  that  I  had 


OF    ADDISON    COFFIN.  471 

returned  alive  from  what  to  tliem  seemed  a  miracu- 
lous iouruey,  especially  those  of  my  own  age,  who 
had  remained  near  their  childhood  homes.  Often 
when  addressing  large  companies  of  bright-faced 
eager  children,  I  felt  a  strange  sensation  at  my  heart 
when  I  realized  that  they  looked  upon  me  as  a  won- 
derful old  man,  while  I  saw  myself  as  one  of  them 
sixty  years  ago. 


CHAPTER   THIRTEEN. 


Visit  to  Yucatan  and  Southern  Mexico — Coasting 
Voyage  Around  the  Gulf — Visit  to  Chichen-Itza 
Ruins — In  Merida  Again — Uxmal  Ruins — The 
National  Festivals — The  Homeward  Journey. 

In  early  life  I  borrowed  and  read  part  of  Mr. 
Stephen's  account  of  his  visit  to  the  ruins  of  South- 
ern Mexico  and  Yucatan,  and  afterward  when  B.  M. 
Norman  published  his  ''Rambles  in  Yucatan/'  in 
1842,  I  purchased  the  book,  read  and  re-read  it  with 
the  deepest  interest.  Through  all  the  intervening 
years,  everything  t(uiching  upon  that  wonderful  re- 
gion was  eagerlv  read  and  enjoyed;  a  desire  to  see 
for  myself  became  one  of  life's  ideals.  Like  nearly 
all  other  readers  of  books  of  travel,  I  had  taken  it 
to  be  true  without  question  that  Egypt,  Palestine, 
Syria,  Greece  and  Italy  held  the  oldest  ruins  in  the 
world,  and  in  my  early  dreams  of  travel  placed  them 
first  and  those  of  Central  America  last  on  the  list. 
So  my  life  work  began  slowly  and  went  on  through 
the  weary  years  of  toil,  disappointment  and  suffer- 
ing, as  heretofore  set  forth,  until  the  time  came  when 
(472) 


OF    ADDISON    COFFIN.  473 

opportunity-  opened  np  for  me  to  finally  realize  my 
last  fond  dream. 

It  seemed  as  though  a  special  Providence  had 
prepared  the  way  for  my  trip  to  Yucatan.  A  niece, 
Jnlia  L.  Ballinger,  had  been  engaged  in  establish- 
ii.g  a  Friends'  Mission  for  Girls  at  Matamoras,  Mex- 
ico. She  had  been  there  twelve  years,  and  had  mas- 
tered the  Spanish  language,  as  well  as  the  Mexican 
Spanish.  She  was  also  conversant  with  the  prevail- 
ing diseases  of  the  climate,  and  the  proper  remedies, 
so  she  conld  be  interpreter  and  doctor.  Upon  corre- 
sponding with  her  I  found  that  a  time  had  come  in 
her  work  when  she  could  and  would  take  a  vacation, 
and  that  she  would  be  able  to  start  on  short  notice. 

I  left  Amo,  Indiana,  the  morning  of  December 
19th,  1895.  At  Indianapolis  I  took  the  Big  Four 
Hailroad  for  St.  Louis,  and  from  there  went  by  the 
Iron  Mountain  route  to  Little  Rock,  Arkansas,  and 
to  Galveston,  Texas,  on  the  gulf,  making  close  con- 
nection, but  arriving  on  time  after  traveling  forty- 
fc^ur  hours.  I  was  much  disappointed  to  find  the 
steamer  delayed  by  a  storm  down  the  coast.  When 
it  came,  in  two  days,  it  had  to  go  to  Morgan  ( 'ity 
and  return,  causing  a  vexatious  delay  of  eight  days- 
While  waiting  for  the  boat,  the  time  was  taken  up 
in  exploring  the  island  and  learning  the  history  of 
the  city,  picking  up  items  of  interest  along  the  dock, 


474  LIFE    AND    TRAVELS 

listening  to  sailors'  yarns  and  witnessing  the  half- 
barbaric  celebration  of  Christmas,  which  was  in  strik- 
ing contrast  to  that  of  northern  cities. 

On  the  morning  of  December  29th  the  steamer 
returned  and  took  a  krge  amount  of  freight  for 
Brownsville,  and  one  passenger,  but  woe  to  me!  I 
was  doomed  to  another  delay.  We  were  scarcely  out 
to  sea  when  an  ugly  thunderstorm  came  up,  making 
it  so  dark  one  could  not  see  to  read,  and  soon  a  hur- 
ricane began  to  blow  with  a  deafening  roar  that  was 
gTand  and  inspiring,  thoup'h  at  times  rather  violent. 
The  steamer  had  to  lay  to  and  double  anchor.  All 
night  the  thunder  boomed,  the  cordage  about  the 
ship  hummed  like  harp  strings,  the  rain  fell  in  tor- 
rents, and  outside  the  waves  dashed  and  roared,  keep- 
ing time  with  the  deep-toned  thunder.  I  began  to 
think  I  was  a  lineal  descendant  of  Jonah,  for  of 
seven  voyages  I  had  made,  six  of  them  were  stormy. 
On  the  30th  the  sun  rose  bright  and  clear  over  the 
troubled  sea,  the  wind  was  falling,  and  about  8  a. 
m.  we  steamed  on  again,  but  kept  under  shelter  of 
the  land  imtil  noon,  then  stood  off,  for  we  had  bright, 
cool  weather  overhead,  though  the  sea  was  still,  chop 
and  rough. 

The  Gulf  of  Mexico  has  its  peculiar  character- 
istics. There  is  not  room  to  get  up  waves  as  in  mid- 
ocean,  but  there  is  space  for  the  vicious  West  India 


UF   ADDISON    COFFIN.  475 

tornado,  which,  comes  on  with  a  sharp,  shrill  scream 
like  the  scape  valve  of  a  locomotive,  whizzing  and 
twanging  like  a  bow-string,  blowing  all  around  a  per- 
son at  once,  and  is  as  hard  to  face  as  a  iirst-class 
blizzard  on  the  great  plains,  the  driving  rain  being 
as  blinding  as  snow. 

The  sea  still  being  quite  rough,  the  steamer  an- 
chored three  miles  off  the  bar  at  Point  Isabel,  early. 
New  Year's  Day,  1896.  I  stepped  into  the  little  boat 
and  was  carried  ashore  with  the  mail  bags,  through 
the  chop  sea  on  the  bar,  and  landed  once  more  on 
solid  ground.  But  alas!  for  me  again;  the  morning 
train  was  gone  and  there  was  no  other  till  4  p.  m. 
A  pleasant  sui^Drise  awaited  me  in  my  use  of  the 
Quaker  language.  I  attracted  the  attention  of  a  sea 
captain,  who  accosted  me  at  once  in  his  mother  tongue, 
saying  he  was  descended  from  one  of  the  Nantucket 
tribes.  He  soon  called  others,  so  that  shortly  there 
gathered  about  quite  a  circle  of  descendants  from 
Nantucket,  Pennsylvania  and  North  Carolina.  Many 
were  glad  to  hear  the  language  of  childhood,  and 
all  were  pleased  to  talk  over  ancestral  reminiscences, 
and  what  seemed  still  more  pleasing  and  interesting 
to  them  was  the  family  genealogy  that  I  could  give 
them,  much  of  which  they  had  not  known,  and  now 
they  could  locate  some  of  the  lost  kinsfolk.  So  pleas- 
antly did  the  time  slip  by  that  the  day  was  gone 


476  LIFE    AND    TRAVELS 

ere  we  were  half  satisfied  witli  the  unexpected  re- 
union. Among  the  family  names  reviewed  were 
Macy,  Kennedy,  Folger,  Worth,  Bunker,  Barker, 
Wheeler,  Starbuck,  Hussey,  etc.,  etc. 

Point  Isabel  is  a  small,  straggling  village,  built 
on  a  sandy  point  almost  surrounded  by  water,  noth- 
ing within  itself,  but  historic  from  being  the  place 
where  General  Taylor  started  on  his  invasion  of  Mex- 
ico. The  embankments  of  his  fortifications  still  show. 
In  its  streets,  and  on  all  the  sand  banks,  I  was  first 
introduced  to  the  fan-leaved  cactus,  which  I  saw  in 
different  forms  for  two  thousand  miles  thereafter. 
The  railroad  across  the  neck  to  Brownsville  is  narrow 
gauge,  and  much  of  it  built  on  piling  driven  into  the 
marshland,  which  is  partly  covered  with  water.  On 
every  side  were  vast  numbers  of  water  fowl,  which 
would  sometimes  darken  the  sun  when  they  took  wing. 
It  was  a  bright  afternoon,  and  memories  of  local 
events  vivid.  We  passed  over  the  ground  where 
General  Taylor  gained  his  first  victories  in  the  cele- 
brated Mexican  war,  the  result  of  which  changed  in- 
directly the  destiny  of  the  Anglo-Saxon  race.  My 
niece  met  me  at  the  station  in  Brownsville.  She  had 
come  over  from  Matamoras  with  several  of  her  friends, 
who,  together  with  other  citizens  of  good  old  Nan- 
tAicket,  Xorth  Carolina,  Ohio  and  Indiana  names,  gave 
me  a  warm,  kindly  reception,  with  the  heartv  hand- 


OF    ADDISON    COFFIN.  477 

shake  of  pioneer  days.  1  spent  the  night  in  Browns- 
ville, and  at  the  solicitation  of  the  minister  of  the 
Episcopal  church,  agreed  to  give  a  lecture  on  Pales- 
tine the  coming  Saturday  night.  The  next  morning 
we  crossed  the  river  in  a  row  boat,  took  street  car,  and 
were  trotted  across  a  low,  alluvial  soil,  one  mile 
into  Matamoras. 

My  niece  and  Miss  Anna  Dysart,  matron 
of  the  Presbyterian  Mission,  had  arranged  for  me 
to  stop  there  while  in  the  city.  Miss  Dysart,  like 
mv  niece,  had  been  instrumental  in  building  up  their 
missions,  and  knew  all  the  privations  and  disappoint- 
ments incident  to  work  in  Mexico.  My  brief  so- 
journ under  Miss  Dysart's  care  was  very  pleasant  and 
will  long  be  remembered.  Through  her  kindness  I 
was  introduced  to  many  of  her  friends.  Miss  Bal- 
linger  also  introduced  me  to  our  consul  and  many  city 
officials,  by  whose  combined  kindness  I  was  dined, 
visited  and  talked  to,  to  my  utmost  capacity. 

From  Matamoras  the  program  of  our  trip  was 
to  be  perfected.  Accordingly  we  consulted  the  maps 
of  the  countrv,  the  possibility  of  travel,  for  be  it 
known  that  travel  in  Mexico,  other  than  by  railroad 
and  on  foot,  is  very  slow,  rough  and  uncertain  busi- 
ness. The  roads  are  bad  in  every  sense  of  the  Avord, 
often  passing  over  long  distances  without  inhabitants 
or  place  of  rest,  so  it  requires  much  planning  and  a 


478  LIFE    AND    TRAVELS 

knowledge  of  where  and  how  to  go.  It  is  impossi- 
ble for  an  American,  especially  one  born  in  the  Ohio 
Valley  or  Lake  region,  to  know  how  different  the  world 
of  nature  and  humanity  is  in  Mexico  from  anything 
he  has  seen  at  home,  for  in  Mexico  many  trees,  bushes, 
plants,  vines,  grasses  and  flowers  are  armed,  and  there 
are  thorns  and  poisonous  juices  and  l^erries,  while 
men  are  armed  with  guns  and  knives.  Then,  too, 
animals,  reptiles  and  insects  are  vindictive  and  ag- 
gressive, so  that  it  requires  much  thought  when  you 
propose  taking  a  trip  of  a  few  thousand  miles  through 
such  a  country. 

Matamoras  being  a  tvpical  Mexican  city  with  20,- 
000  inhabitants,  I  took  a  few  lessons  in  every-day 
life  while  I  stayed  there.  I  formed  some  acquain- 
tance with  it«  miserably  poor  people,  its  dirt,  dogs 
and  fleas,  all  mingling  in  one  common  herd.  While 
thus  engaged  Mr.  Gorman,  our  consul,  was  very  kind 
and  attentive  in  aiding  me.  He,  too,  was  a  traveler, 
and  we  had  been  over  much  the  same  ground.  He 
was  a  fluent  talker,  a  plausible  reasoner,  and  gave  me 
many  valuable  items  for  the  journey  south.  I  also 
met  Dr.  McMannus,  who  could  speak  many  languages, 
a  traveler  and  noted  chemist,  then  in  government 
employ.  He  was  a  shrewd  reasoner  and  a  judge  of 
liumanity.  He,  too,  gave  me  many  way  marks  and 
suggestive  ideas  that  were  valuable  further  on.      My 


OF    ADDISON    COFFIN.  479 

talk  at  Brownsvilk  had  called  up  old  memories  m 
our  past  lives,  and  our  adventures  and  the  fountain 
of  memory  was  unsealed,  and  we  became  kinJred 
spirits. 

On  the  morning  of  January  6th,  lS9(i,  we  started 
on  our  long  trip.  My  niece,  Julia  Ballinger,  completed 
the  details  of  the  journey  by  many  ne<.*essary  additions 
to  our  outtit,  in  cases  of  emergency  or  accident.  We 
took  rail  and  ran  up  the  Rio  Grande  river  seventy- 
five  miles,  through  a  level,  rich  country,  thinly  set- 
tled, but  capable  of  almost  limitless  production  if 
properly  cultivated,  especially  in  corn. 

Then  we  took  stage  for  Monterey,  two  hundred 
miles  away.  The  stage  trip  proved  to  be  full  of 
interest,  hardship  and  novelty.  The  coach  was  drawn 
by  two,  three  or  four  mules,  as  necessity  required, 
sometimes  driven  by  headlong,  wild  drivers.  The 
stages  were  clumsy,  uncomfortable  and  rickety;  the 
roads  were  very  rough  in  places,  sideling,  rocky,  full  of 
deep  chucks  and  gullies.  We  traveled  day  and  night, 
on  level  ground,  at  a  fast  tr<:)t,  down  hill  at  a  break- 
neck run,  making  the  old  stages  sway  and  bounce 
so  that  it  was  almost  impossible  to  keep  one's  seat. 
On  two  of  the  relays  of  twenty  miles  there  were 
out-riders  used — men  mounted  on  strong,  active  mules, 
with  twelve  feet  of  rope  attached  to  their  saddles  and 
to  the  end  of  the  tongue  of  the  stage.      When  the 


480  LIFE    AND    TRAVELS 

driver  snapped  his  long  whip  the  wheel  mules  started, 
the  oiit-riders  applied  their  spnrs,  and  we  were  off 
with  a  wild  bound. 

One  cool,  bright,  afternoon,  the  road  led  across 
a  wide,  rolling  plain,  covered  with  an  immense  growth 
of  prickly  pear,  with  the  fruit  nearly  ripe.  The 
out-riders  wore  broad-brimmed  hats  anl  red  blankets, 
which  fluttered  and  flashed  in  the  sunlight  as  we 
dashed  dow^n  the  long  slopes  with  shouts  and  yells 
that  seemed  to  enter  into  the  spirit  of  the  mules,  for 
they  stretched  out  in  a  long,  steady  run,  and  for 
the  time  seemed  unconscious  of  weariness.  Such  a 
run  of  four  to  six  miles  down  a  seemingly  boundless 
plain  is  calculated  to  arouse  the  spirits  of  any  one 
fond  of  wild,  free  life.  What  mattered  it;  for  the 
time  being  we  were  thrown  in  all  directions  and 
wildly  grasped  at  everything  in  sight.  But  we  for- 
got it  all  and  entered  into  the  spirit  of  the  surround- 
ings; yet  .when  it  was  all  over  it  made  us  think  of 
Horace  Greely  when  old  Haunk  M<:»nk  drove  him 
over  the  Sierras. 

The  larger  poi^tion  of  the  staging  was  across  a 
rich,  almost  unoccupied  cactus  plain,  capable  of  sup- 
porting a  dense  population  if  properly  imgated.  The 
small  villages  we  passed  were  mostlv  made  up  of  mis- 
erable huts,  destitute  of  comfort,  where  children, 
dogs,  pigs,  and  donkeys  mingle  on  terms  of  friendly 


OF    ADDISON    COFFIN.  481 

equality.     The  nights  were  quite  cool,  and  there  was 
not  a  single  place  where  we  could  get  wann.     Twice 
a  shovel  of  live  coals  was  dropped  on  the  dirt  Hoor 
over  which  we  warmed  our  feet,  while  half-dressed 
children  were  rolling  in  the  dust,  seemingly  "face  all 
over,"  as  they  heeded  not  the  cold.      One  part  of  our 
oiittit  was  a  colfee  stewer.      At  the  relays  my  niece 
would  put  her  coffee  and  water  in  the  pot,  go  into 
a  hut  and  put  it  on  a  tripod  over  the  small  tire,  and 
while  it  came  to  a  boil  talk  to  the  wondering  women 
and  children,  who  had  never  seen  an  American  lady 
do  so  before,  and  they  seemed  to  count  it  an  event 
in  their    lives,  and  invariably  asked    for  the  coffee 
grounds  after  we  had  used  them,  out  of  which  they 
would  have  a  small  feast.      Everywhere  the  jx>or,  de- 
oraded   women   ha<l   a   kind    word   for   my    niece   at 
parting.     She    talked    to    them    in    their    own    lan- 
guage, and  they  felt  in  their  hearts  that  she  had  a 
pitying  sympathy  for  them.     The  little  dirty,  black- 
eyed  children  gathered  around  and  looked  up  with 
a  momentary  flash  of  humanity  in  their  faces. 

At  Monterey  we  took  rail  for  Mexico  City,  700 
miles  further  on.  The  route  lay,  part  of  the  time, 
through  one  of  the  well-cultivated  valleys,  where 
there  were  fields  of  wheat,  rye  and  barley,  and  thous- 
ands of  acres  being  plowed  for  corn,  but  in  most 
places  the  work  is  done  after  the  old  primitive  way 


482  LIFE    AND    TRAVELS 

— no  iiiachineTv,  no  labor-saving  tocds  of  any  kind. 
It  was  a  very  interesting  trip,  as  it  took  me  tlirougk 
a  new  section  of  the  country,  giving  me  a  still  wider 
knowledge  of  our  next  door  neighbors  southward. 
The  average  American  has  an  incorrect  idea  of  Mex- 
ico because  it  is  down  in  one  comer  of  the  map. 
When  seen  and  traveled  c>ver  it  is  a  large  place,  cap- 
able of  great  advancement,  and  of  supporting  mil- 
lions of  people. 

We  arrived  in  Mexico  in  the  morning,  and  be- 
fore the  train  stopped  five  dogs  boarded  and  came 
into  our  car,  eagerly  hunting  for  anything  eatable. 
When  we  stepped  off  there  w^ere  enough  dogs  in 
sight  to  be  five  each  for  all  the  other  cars,  and  beer- 
gars  more  repulsive  and  thievish  than  dogs,  thrust- 
ing themselves  forward,  and  last,  but  equally  annoy- 
ing, the  tricky,  treacherous  porters  swarmed  around. 
We  found  the  home  of  Dr.  Johnson,  who  formerly 
lived  at  Matamoras,  and  was  known  to  my  niece. 
He  and  his  family  bade  us  welcome,  and  we  had  a 
pleasant  home  during  our  stay  in  the  city.  Mexico 
is  a  wonder  within  itself,  and  becomes  more  so  when 
contrasted  with  other  cities  on  the  continent.  In 
all  its  general  outlines  it  is  distinctively  Moorish,  and 
belongs  to  the  time  of  the  Moors  in  Spain.  The 
railroads,  street  cars  and  electric  lights  are  out  of  place, 
when  compared  with  its  internal  structure  and  the 


OF    ADDJSON    COFFIN.  483 

daily  life  of  its  people.  Six  years  had  passed  since 
1  was  in  the  city.  The  changes  that  had  come  in 
that  time  were  tangible  evidence  that  there  was  yet 
hope  of  a  better  day  for  the  Republic.  The  num- 
ber of  vehicles  had  largely  increased,  the  fine  Eng- 
lish coaches  had  doubled,  street  cars  had  trebled, 
express  wagons  had  become  a  necessity,  the  fire  de- 
partment had  been  improved,  the  soldiers  were  cleaner 
and  under  better  drill,  the  number  wearing  Ameri- 
can clothes  had  increased,  American  residents  had 
doubled,  foreigners  were  treated  with  more  civility^ 
and  many  of  the  animosities  and  antagonisms  were 
disappearing;  yet  the  peculiar  type  of  humanity 
formed  by  the  amalgamation  of  Spanish  and  Indian 
will  continue  for  many  a  day.  We  still  noticed  fully 
twenty  different  physiognomies,  and  the  same  num- 
ber of  languages  were  spoken  in  the  market.  The 
gradation  is  from  the  highest  type  of  pure  Castilian 
nobility  down  to  the  little,  black,  dwarfish  mountain 
Indian,  w^hose  humanity,  in  some  eases,  is  but  one 
remove  above  a  well-trained  shepherd  dog.  We  were 
pleased  with  one  feature  of  city  life,  as  seen  on  the 
streets,  in  the  churches  and  befoi^  civil  law — the 
miserable  begirar  and  dw^arf  Indian  are  accorded  equal 
rights  and  privileges  everywhere,  to  go  and  come,  to 
seek  life,  liberty  and  happiness. 

To  a  thinking,  observing  American,  all  of  Mexico 


484  LIFE    AND    TRAVELS 

is  interesting,  for  everything  is  in  contrast  to  the 
United  States.  The  daily  vocations,  and  even  the 
tools  used,  are  different  from  ours.  There  are  five 
ways  of  yoking  cattle  to  a  plow  or  cart,  and  none 
of  them  are  as  we  do  it.  Instead  of  cutting  their 
grain,  they  pull  much  of  it  up,  root  and  all.  They 
are  still  using  the  treading  floor  and  hand  flail  in- 
stead of  steam  separators ;  in  this  way  they  are  like  the 
people  of  Spain  and  Egypt.  The  primitive  plows 
used  in  the  days  of  Abraham  are  yet  ^een  in  the  val- 
leys of  Mexico.  In  the  streets  of  the  city  the  porter 
goes  pacing  by  with  great  loads  on  his  back;  the  lit- 
tle donkey  carries  the  same  shaped  bundle,  has  the 
same  rambling  gait  that  his  elder  brother  has  in  Cairo, 
Egypt,  Damascus  and  Syria. 

There  are  many  things  in  and  aroun<l  the  city 
such  as  churches,  chapels,  cath-edrals,  shrines  and 
historical  places  that  are  very  entertaining,  but  none 
had  so  much  interest  for  me  as  the  great  National 
Museum,  with  its  collection  of  relics  of  the  wonder- 
ful prehistoric  past,  which  the  government  is  gath- 
ering from  all  parts  of  the  Republic;  the  curiosities 
had  visibly  increased  in  quantity  and  quality.  The 
great  calendar  stone  is  the  wonder  of  the  wonders; 
next  to  it  the  image  of  Ohack  Mull,  found  at  Chi- 
chen,  in  Yucatan,  by  Le  Plongeon,  and  confiscated 
by  the  government;  then  comes  the  colassal  head  of 


OF    AJkDISON    COFFJxV.  485 

(liorite  stone,  staiidiiig  three  feet  liigli,  wliicli  is  an 
object  of  study  to  archaeologists.  Its  history  and 
significance,  like  the  others,  is  yet  a  mystery.  The 
scientist  and  general  reader  hnds  in  Mexico  a  mine 
of  hidden  knowledge.  As  we  walked  among  the 
ruins  of  the  past,  the  desire  to  know^  what  lav  beyond 
our  reach  was  constantly  intensified  by  new  discov- 
eries that  upset  favorite  theories. 

The  murderous  and  treacherous  spirit  of  the 
Spaniard  was  imparted  to  the  conquered  Indians,  and 
the  worst  element  of  the  Indian  was  absorbed  by 
the  Spaniards;  then  this  unfortunate  combination  fell 
under  the  influence  of  the  woi-st  characters  of  the 
Roman  Catholic  church,  and  was  doubl}^  poisoned 
by  it^  superstitions,  and  this  polluted  mass  vented  its 
venom  on  the  dumb  relics  of  the  lost,  prehistoric  civ- 
ilization, w^hich  destruction  now  fills  the  thinking 
world  with  loathing  and  indignation.  Many  speci- 
mens of  architectural  beauty  bear  the  mark  of  the 
sledge  hammer,  wielded  by  a  blood-thirsty,  bigoted 
(^atholic  priest,  or  by  his  order  it  has  been  shivered 
by  gunpowder.  When  I  recall  the  history  of  the 
Spanish  race  in  the  past,  and  see  the  fruits  of  its  con- 
quests, it  fills  me  with  horror.  In  Mexico  they  con- 
quered a  superior  race  and  left  them  far  worse  than 
they  found  them.  There  would  be  more  hope  for 
the  people  of   Mexico  to-day   were   they   intelligent 

31 


486  '  LIFE    AND    TRAVELS 

atheists  instead  of  Roman  Catholics.  It  would  be  far 
better  for  the  government  if  every  Catholic  priest 
was  forever  banished;  there  would  be  more  hope  of 
building  up  free  schools  and  a  stable  government, 
and  of  arresting  and  reforming  the  terrible  state  of 
iimnoralitj  that  exist  everywhere^  for  it  makes 
the  heart  sick  t-o  know  the  amount  of  wickedness 
and  impurity  that  can  be  laid  at  the  door  of  the 
Catholic  church  in  Mexico. 

Our  next  journey  was  by  way  of  Puebla  and 
Jalapa  to  Vera  Cruz,  through  a  beautiful  valley  and 
tolerably  well-cultivated  country.  The  people  were 
still  treading  out  the  rye  a,nd  l)arley  on  the  tread- 
ing floor;  shocks  of  rye  were  standing  thick  in  some 
iields,  which  was  harvested  two  month>i  before,  with 
a  month  of  dry  weather  still  ahead.  The  whole  pro- 
cess of  harvesting  and  threshing  was  just  like  I  had 
seen  in  Spain  and  Portugal.  AVe  stopped  a  day  in 
Puebla,  a  beautiful  city  of  120,000  inhabitants,  with 
a  cathedral  not  surpassed  in  beauty  by  anything  on 
the  continent.  It  was  verv  interesting  to  watch  the 
effect  of  this  imposing  edifice  upon  the  poor,  degraded 
mountaineers  when  they  entered  the  building  for 
the  first  time.  They  came  from  huts  and  caves  where 
cleanliness  is  unknown,  and  where  misery  and  want 
make  up  their  live.s.  When  they  entered  the  splen- 
did hall  with  its  dazzling  beauty,  and  heard  the  soft, 


OF    ADDISON    COFFIN.  487 

sweet  music  rising  and  floating  away,  the  scene  was 
to  them  what  a  vision  or  a  visit  of  a  convoy  of  angels 
would  be  to  spiritual  Christians,  when  engaged  in 
their  solemn  worship.  So  startling  and  overwhelm- 
ing was  the  impression  made  upon  them  that  ever 
after  they  w^ere  the  willing  slaves  of  the  priest,  who 
had  them  under  his  oare;  his  word  was  law;  to  them 
he  was  their  highest  ideal  of  God. 

Mne  miles  from  Puebla  is  the  celebrated  pyramid 
of  Cholula,  supposed  to  be  the  largest  structure  ever 
built  by  man.  Knowing  that  there  were  doubts 
about  it  being  an  artificial  mound,  I  was  prepared 
to  look  with  an  impartial  eye,  though  rather  wish- 
ing it  to  be  artificial,  but  in  ten  minutes  after  reach- 
ing it,  the  mistake  was  apparent,  for  the  whole  out- 
line of  the  mound,  its  relation  to  other  natural  hills 
in  the  vicinity,  was  proof  of  its  natural  formation. 
It  is  the  last  of  a  line  of  detached  hills,  projecting 
into  the  valley  from  the  mountains  to  the  west. 
The  axis  of  the  line  comes  straight  to  Cholula,  yet 
it  is  evident  the  hill  has  been  terraced  and  adorned 
as  a  place  of  resort  by  all  the  generations  of  people 
inhabiting  the.  country  for  thousands  of  years. 
Though  I  was  somewhat  disappointed  in  finding  it 
a  natural  mound,  I  could  but  admire  the  taste  and 
ideal  judgment  of  all  the  people  of  the  past  in  se- 
lecting it  as  a  resort  or  place  of .  worship,  for  there 


488  LIFE    AND    TRAVELS 

are  few  more  cliariniiig  and  beautiful.  It  is  in  the 
niidst  of  a  romantic  valley,  while  rising  high  above 
the  mountain  range  stands  Popocatepetl,  covered  with 
perpetual  snow,  which  crowns  the  scene  with  a  splen- 
dor that  is  almost  intoxicating  in  its  effect  on  any 
lover  of  the  sublime. 

In  Puebla  we  had  an  experience  with  dishonest 
porters,  who  attempted  to  extort  and  defraud,  but 
Julia  was  equal  to  the  emergency.  She  bade 
me  watch  the  luggage  while  she  found  a  guard, 
and  in  a  few  minutes  had  the  thievish  brutes  scat- 
tered like  frightened  curs,  and  all  was  well.  On 
the  way  from  Puebla  to  Jalapa  we  passed  thousands 
of  acres  of  the  maguay,  or  century  plant,  from  which 
the  vile  pulque,  the  national  drink,  is  made.  It 
was  in  rows  from  six  to  ten  feet  apart,  and  presented 
a  novel  sight.  As  food,  it  is  as  worthless  to  Mexico 
as  tobacco  is  to  the  States.  This  intoxicating  drink 
is  as  imbruting  to  the  Mexicans  as  tobacco  to  white 
people. 

Jalapa  is  an  old  Spanish  town  built  on  the  side 
of  a  hill  so  steep  that  there  are  no  public  carriages 
in  use,  and  l)ut  one  street  car  line.  It  is  located 
in  the  heart  of  the  banana  and  coffee  region,  where 
everything  in  sight  is  in  strong  contrast  with  the 
wide  cactus  plains  passed  in  coming  to  that  ])oint. 
There  we  wei-e  first  introduced  to  the  perpetual  green 


OF    ADDISON    COFFIN.  489 

of  the  sub-tropieal  growth.  The  change  was  as  sud- 
den as  it  was  delightful.  We  looked  with  glad  hearts 
upon  our  new  surroundings;  every  form  of  organic 
life  had  altered,  and  we  seemed  to  have  entered  a 
new  world,  where  vegetable  and  animal  life  appear 
to  be  governed  by  new  laws,  and  where  humanity 
merely  vegetate.  The  banana  fields  on  the  mountain 
side,  with  coffee  orchards,  form  a  beautiful  pano- 
rama. As  we  wound  in  many  a  graceful  curve  of 
wonderful  engineering  skill  over  and  among  the  ever- 
green mountains,  we  drank  in  the  glorious  scene 
until  w^e  began  to  feel  as  if  we  were  paid  for  the 
long  journey.  As  we  gradually  emerged  from  the 
mountain  scenery,  we  had  glimpses  of  the  lowland, 
and  were  soon  2:oing  down  grade  to  the  tangled  for- 
ests and  impenetrable  jungles  with  which  they  are 
covered.  In  many  places  the  growth  was  so  thick 
that  a  man  could  not  cut  his  way  a  hundred  feet 
an  hour,  and  nearly  all  the  plants  are  unknown  in 
the  states.  We  felt  that  the  slower  the  train  the 
better,  for  it  gave  opportunity  to  take  in  more  of  the 
wonders  that  were  flitting  by.  Our  car  windows 
were  all  open,  and  the  hot  sunshine  came  in  with 
astonishing  intensity,  especially  when  we  remembered 
the  zero  w^eather  in  the  Ohio  Valley.  Amid  such 
surroundings  we  were  hurried  across  wide  expanses 
of  i>Tass  land,  with  cattle  feeding  on  the  ever-green 


490  LIFE    AND    TRAVELS 

pastures,  and  stretches  of  naked,  hot  sand,  stagnant 
lagoons,  until  suddenly  the  wide  gulf  district  and  the 
city  of  Vera  Cruz  was  before  us ;  we  entered  and  were 
horrified.  I  would  speak  a  good  word  for  all  places 
and  people,  if  I  could  do  so  in  truth,  but  I  can  say 
nothing  in  favor  of  Vera  Cruz  as  a  city,  and  very 
little  for  the  people.  It  is  one  of  the  most  loath- 
some and  disgusting  cities,  more  vile  in  filthiness  than 
the  outlet  of  the  Chicago  river,  more  dirty  than  the 
market  streets  in  Jerusalem  and  Constantinople,  the 
stagnant  canals  of  Hamburg,  the  Chinese  quarter  in 
San  Francisco,  or  the  fumes  of  Colter's  Hell  in  Yel- 
lowstone Park.  Every  step  we  took  we  smelt  a  hor- 
rid stench,  every  breath  we  breathed  we  inhaled  vile 
odors  into  our  lungs,  and  at  night  when  the  muck 
was  stirred  up  wath  long  brooms,  it  became  foul  be- 
yond belief,  and  to  crown  the  horrors  there  are  thous- 
ands of  carrion  crows  or  southern  buzzards  eating 
and  fighting  in  the  streets,  sitting  on  the  gates  and 
roofs  of  houses,  in  and  around  the  market  house, 
awmino-  posts,  and  everywhere  there  is  room  for  their 
feet.  We  soon  imagined  that  the  foo'd  was  impreg- 
nated. Foreigners  try  to  overcome  it  with  strong 
perfumes,  but  in  vain;  it  persistently  asserts  itself. 
ALL,  ALL  IS  YILE. 

On  the  20th  of  January  we  boarded  a  Mexican 
coasting  steamer,   loaded   to   its   utmost   capacity   in 


OF    ADDISON    COFFIN.  491 

tonnage  and  bulk,  with  a.  miscellaneous  oai-go  suited 
to  the  wants  of  a  thousand  miles  of  coast  around  the 
gulf.  Its  final  destination  was  Progreso,  the  main 
shipping  port  of  Yucatan,  and  we  thought  it  a  rare 
opportunity  to  see  the  coast  and  the  shipping  busi- 
ness, as  we  could  not  go  by  a  direct  sea  voyage  from 
port  to  port  by  the  regular  lines.  After  we  left 
Vera  Cruz  we  sailed  down  the  coast  southward,  and 
the  first  important  poin^  of  any  interest  was  Coat- 
zacoalcos,  at  the  mouth  of  the  river  of  the  same 
name,  at  the  north  end  of  the  Tehuantepee  railroad. 
We  arrived  that  night  and  made  fast  to  the  dock, 
and  for  a  time  all  was  still,  but  when  morning  came 
we  were  in  the  midst  of  tropical  splendor.  There 
were  gTOves  of  stately  palm  and  mahogany  in  sight, 
with  endless  variety  of  new  and  unknown  trees,  bushes, 
vines  and  flowers.  The  grass  grew  to  the  water's  edge ; 
pendant  vines  hung  from  the  trees  and  waved  in  the 
breeze;  many  new  and  beautiful  birds  sang  in  the  for- 
est; cocoanuts,  half  grown,  were  seen  in  great  clus- 
ters; the  date  palm  was  full  of  growing  fruit,  and 
many  varieties  of  nuts,  fruits  and  berries  were  seen 
on  every  side.  It  was  a  marvelous  contrast  to  any- 
thing ever  seen  in  the  States,  especially  in  the  lake 
region,  and  it  is  difficult  to  give  an  intelligent  de- 
scription for  lack  of  a  common  standard  of  compari- 
son.     Evervtliing  is  new,  and  at  fii^st  we  felt  bewild- 


492  LIFE    AND    TRAVELS 

ered  with  the  strange  surroundings.  We  knew  it  was 
the  season  of  mid-winter,  yet  we  were  standing  amidst 
mid-summer  hfe. 

The  steamer  had  much  freight  to  land,  and  all 
day  the  demck  was  kept  busy  hoisting  this  to  the 
wharf.  It  was  afterwards  earned  off  into  an  en- 
closed lot  and  piled  up  close  to  a  train  of  cars  wait^ 
ing  to  receive  it.  There  were  no  trucks,  drays  or 
carts  of  any  kind;  all  wa^ carried  on  the  backs  of 
men  or  mlled  on  the  ground.  They  seemed  bent  on 
making  instead  of  saving  work.  It  was  an  inter- 
esting day  to  us,  for  both  men  and  nature  were  en- 
vironed, developed  and  actuated  by  impulses  that 
were  entirely  new  to  us.  It  was  our  first  lesson  in 
sub-tropical  life,  and  firmly  fastened  itself  on  the 
memory.  When  nearly  sundown  the  ship  steamed 
southward  up  the  river  to  a  landing  thirty-six  miles 
inland.  The  trip  was  very  fine,  the  air  was  soft,  cool 
and  refreshing;  the  moonlight  gave  a  charming  out- 
line to  things  on  shore,  while  strange  soimds  were 
heard  in  the  dark  forests.  Small  fires  were  blazing 
neai'  the  native  huts  on  shore  to  frighten  away  nox- 
ious insects  and  reptiles;  new  constellations  had  come 
into  view  in  the  southern  heavens,  which  enhanced 
the  night  scene.  Sometime  after  midnight  the  ship 
landed,  and  soon  all  grew  still  and  we  too  lay  down 
to  rest  and  dream  of  wonderful  things.      In  the  morn- 


OF    ADDISON    COFFIN.  493 

iiig  there  was  a  grand  serenade  of  cock  crowing, 
turkey  gobbling,  dogs  barking,  donkeys  braying,  par- 
rots screaming,  and  as  the  morning  advanced  the 
whole  forest  was  vo<,'al  with  the  singing  of  birds,  and 
to  me  it  was  the  beginning  of  a  glorious  day.  The 
ship  was  close  in  shore,  the  river  was  narrow  and 
deep,  and  all  the  surroundings  were  more  beautiful 
and  inspiring  than  at  Ooatzocoalcos.  Soon  after 
sunrise  canoes  began  coming  down  the  river.  They 
were  some  forty  feet  long  and  made  of  a  single  tree; 
all  were  loaded  with  manv  varieties  of  vegetables  and 
fiiiits.  There  were  large  numbers  of  all  kinds  of 
domestic  fowls,  with  a  vast  amount  of  eggs  in  small 
wicker  baskets,  palm  branches  thirty  feet  long  for 
thatching  houses,  and  rolls  of  a  leaf  6x8  feet,  which 
seemed  very  valuable,  besides  other  things  new  and 
unknown.  Soon  the  local  market  of  the  town  was 
a  busy,  noisy  place,  where  human  nature  and  sel- 
fishness were  as  conspicuous  as  in  other  parts  of  the 
world.  Across  the  river  were  grand  forests,  beneath 
the  dark  shade  of  which  v/ere  many  conical,  thatched 
huts,  in  which  the  natives  were  lazily  smoking  their 
pipes  and  spending  their  aimless,  indolent  lives. 

Soon  after  noon  the  signal  was  given  to  cast  loose, 
and  we  steamed  oif  down  the  river,  making  rapid 
headway,  and  were  ere  long  at  the  coast  again.  The 
down    tri[)    was    mor(5    than    ordinarily    entertaining. 


494  LIFE    AND    TRAVELS 

With  the  field  glass  we  could  look  off  into  the  deep 
forests,  into  the  fniit  orchards  and  gardens,  off  among 
the  palm  groves,  ont  on  the  low,  green  pastures,  where 
there  were  thonsands  of  fat  cattle  and  hundreds  of 
poor  horses  grazing.  AVe  could  also  look  over  the 
marshlands  and  see  immense  flocks  of  large,  white 
cranes  slowly  floating  about,  and  other  water  fowl 
in  abundance.  Every  turn  in  the  river  presented 
some  new  object  of  interest  or  new  scene  of  beauty. 
Above,  below  and  all  around  seemed  to  have  some- 
thing charming  to  the  eve  and  impressive  to  the  mem- 
ory. 

When  w^e  annved  at  the  mouth  of  the  river,  the 
vast  pile  of  freight  left  the  day  before  had  been  lifted 
again  and  packed  in  the  cars,  thus  doubling  the  amount 
of  labor  it  would  have  taken  under  proper  manage- 
ment. We  took  on  more  freight,  an-.l  just  at  night- 
fall we  steamed  out  to  sea  and  turned  eastward.  The 
night  was  at  first  calm  and  clear.  The  outline  of  the 
shore  formed  the  horizon  on  one  side,  and  the  quiet, 
silent  sea  on  the  other.  It  was  a  luxury  to  sit  in  the 
solemn  stillness  and  l)reathe  the  soft,  pure  sea  air,  but 
in  the  night  a  stiff  breeze  come  on,  and  by  morning 
we  had  a  rough,  chop  sea,  that  took  the  romance  out 
of  the  surroundings.  We  anchored  off  the  port  of 
Frontera,  and  awaited  the  coming  out  of  the  mail 
boat,   the  sea  being  too  rough  to  enter  the  harbor. 


OF    ADDISON    COFFIN.  495 

After  waiting  several  hour?  it  came,  but  there  was 
much  difficulty  in  making  it  fast  to  the  steamer.  It 
rose  and  fell  six  to  eight  feet,  and  passengers,  mail 
bags  and  luggage  had  to  be  transferred  Avhen  the  decks 
were  even.  There  was  danger,  excitement  and  merri- 
ment connected  with  the  work,  but  after  many  slips, 
bumps,  thumps  and  tumbles,  the  transfers  were  safely 
made,  and  the  boat  cast  loose,  and  while  bounding 
away  like  a  cork,  we  again  put  cait  to  sea. 

The  next  important  place  was  Carmen,  on  Car- 
men Island,  in  the  lagoon.  It  is  one  of  the  centers 
of  the  logwood  and  mahogany  business;  there  were 
many  ships  in  port  loading  for  Xew  York  and  Eu- 
rope. The  amount  of  logwood  shipped,  and  the  man- 
ner of  preparing  it,  was  quite  a  sui-prise  to  me.  Every 
part  of  a  tree,  even  stumps,  roots  and  small  branches, 
are  saved.  All  tjie  bark  and  sap  wood  is  shaved  off, 
and  the  whole  is  cut  into  short  sticks  like  ordinary 
cord  wood  is  prepared  for  market,  and  bought  and  sold 
by  the  pound.  An  active  man  will  prepare  from  six 
hundred  to  one  thousand  pounds  per  day,  and  true 
to  their  shiftless  way,  all  is  done  by  hand  instead  of 
trucks  and  wheelbarrows.  The  dealers  say  it  is  now^ 
used  vevj  extensively  for  coloring  wine  and  other 
drinks.  The  mahogany  is  cut  in  logs  from  eight  to 
twenty  feet  long,  lined  up  and  straightened  for  close 
packing  in  ships,  and  rafted  down  the  rivers  and  la- 


496  LIFE    AND    TRAVELS 

goons  to  the  coast^  and  there  hoisted  aboard  ships 
with  derricks,  quite  an  exciting  and  dsngerous  busi- 
ness. 

We  went  ashore  at  Carmen,  and  visited  the  beau- 
tiful Plaza,  with  its  fountains  and  flowers,  one  of  the 
public  schools,  and  one  of  the  splendid  private  homes, 
with  it-s  inner  court  of  rare  fruits  and  flowers.  Julia 
Ballinger's  good  Spanish  created  quite  a  sensation 
in  the  school.  Teachers  and  students  gathered  around 
with  eager  looks  and  questions,  to  which  she  could 
readilv  reply,  and  they  in  turn  were  willing  to  an- 
swer questions  relative  to  their  school  system,  theirs 
class  books,  the  school  appliances  and  their  thoughts 
concerning  jDractical  education.  While  listening  to 
their  talk  we  perceived  the  primitive  ideas,  jvhich, 
^\atli  their  meager  school  furniture,  left  us  no  longer 
in  wonder  as  to  why  they  were  so  far  behind  in 
general  intelligence.  The  influence  of  the  priest- 
hoo<:l  was  dwai*fing  and  blighting  soul  and  mind.  At 
the  end  of  an  hour  we  withdrew,  for  we  saw  the  whole 
school  was  completely  disorganized  and  had  gath- 
ered around  the  wonderful  American  lady.  One  of 
the  teachers  could  speak  some  English,  and  he  and 
I  did  quite  an  amount  of  talking  while  Miss  Ballinger 
was  interesting  the  school.  Later  on  in  the  day  four 
bright  boys  came  to  the  steamer  to  bid  us  good-bye, 
and  ask  more  (juestions  about  some  points  which  were 


OF    ADDISON    COFFJN.  497 

making  a  discussion  in  the  school.      They  finally  left 
us  in  high  glee,  starting  off  on  a  run. 

At  Carmen  we  met  the  Maya  people,  the  rem- 
nant of  the  oldest  race  in  the  world,  and  speaking  the 
oldest  language.  One  of  the  physical  characteristics 
came  at  once  into  view.  They  are  plantigrade,  and 
have  prehensile  toes;  the  great  toe  of  the  body  stands 
off'  an  inch  from  the  others;  with  it  they  can  grasp 
a  rope,  the  limb  of  a  tree,  or  any  small  object  that 
they  can  with  the  hand.  This  makes  them  first-class 
sailors  and  boatmen.  They  are  wholly  distinct  from 
all  other  races  and  tribes  of  people.  Their  cleanly 
habits  were  so  marked  that  w^e  noticed  it  at  first  con- 
tact, and  we  soon  recognized  and  reverenced  many 
lingering  characteristics  of  their  lost  civilization.  We 
became  attached  to  them  through  sympathy  for  a 
ruined  and  conquered  race,  who  were  once  the  rulers 
of  all  that  land. 

The  natural  scenerV'  around  Carmen  has  much 
of  the  marvelous  and  beautiful  in  it  to  people  from 
our  lake  region.  The  luxuriant  sub-tropical  growth 
comes  down  to  the  water  line  in  forests  of  magnifi- 
cent palms,  or  jungles  of  vines  and  flowers,  impene- 
trable by  men  or  large  animals.  Sometimes  they  are 
all  aflame  with  flowers  of  yellow  and  crimson  with 
i-ipening  berries.  Everywhere  is  the  everlasting 
green   of  perpetual  spring  time,   where  frost  is  un- 


498  LIFE    AND    TRAVELS 

kuowii.  The  song  bii*ds  were  new,  as  were  the  mul- 
titude of  bugS;  worms  aud  iusects.  Some  of  them 
were  bright  and  pretty^  others  loathsome  to  behold, 
jet  all  diligent  to  till  their  brief  mission  in  life,  while 
everywhere,  unchanging  and  singing  the  same  low 
tune,  the  mosquito  makes  himself  known. 

i^rom  the  lagoon  we  sailed  for  Campeche,  tak- 
ing all  night  to  make  the  run.  We  came  in  sight  of 
land  eaidy  in  the  morning,  but  on  account  of  low 
tide,  the  steamer  anchored  three  miles  from  shore. 
We  were  tired  of  coasting-  and  sick  of  the  dirty  cook- 
ing, tobacco  smoke  and  general  slov^enliness  aboard 
the  steamer,  so  w^e  took  a  small  sail  boat  and  came 
to  land  after  a  rough  sail  among  the  breakers  and 
hot  sunshine.  We  thought  of  stopping  in  the  city 
a  few  days,  but  We  learned  that  the  railroad  train 
toward  Merida  would  leav€  at  3  p.  m.,  and  as  it  did 
not  run  every  day,  we  decided  to  go  on  at  once 
and  trust  to  seeing  the  city  at  another  time.  We 
took  lunch  and  a  walk  through  the  streets,  and  then 
to  the  railroad  station,  and  at  6  p.  m.  reached  the 
end  of  the  track  where  there  was  a  gap  of  thirty - 
nine  miles,  which  had  to  be  made  in  a  volon,  or  two- 
wheeled  cart.  When  we  first  saw  that  style  of  ve- 
hicle, we  had  to  acknowledge  there  was  something 
new  under  the  sun.  It  was  a  combination  of  dray 
and  ox  cart,  log  wagon  and  mud  wagon,  such  as  were 


OF    ADDISON    COFFIN.  499 

used  sixty  years  ago  in  the  northwest.  Hideously 
ugly,  uncomfortable,  unwieldy  and  repulsive,  it  was 
drawn  by  three  mules,  one  between  the  shafts  and 
one  on  each  side.  There  was  no  especial  place  to 
get  in  OT  out;  to  do  either  was  like  climbing  a  rail- 
road fence.  The  trip  had  to  be  ma-le  in  the  night 
to  reach  the  train  on  the  other  end  of  the  road  next 
morning-,  so  we  mounted  a  cart,  ready  for  an  experi- 
ence. The  driver  proved  to  be  unskillful  and  head- 
long in  his  driving,  and  we  had  to  sit  in  a  half  re- 
clining position  or  lie  down.  We  started  on  a  lively 
trot  over  a  very  rocky,  broken  road,  the  cart  sway- 
ing sideways,  endways  and  all  other  ways,  bounding 
in  the  air  and  dropping  into  chucks.  At  midnight 
we  stopped  to  feed  the  mules  and  take  lunch  where 
there  were  many  other  carts,  then  on  again  just  be- 
hind the  mail  cart,  but  in  less  than  two  miles  one 
wheel  came  oif  our  cart  and  dowai  we  went  with  a 
bang.  The  mules  took  fright  and  were  soon  beyond 
control,  but  the  driver  and  attendant  of  the  mail  cart 
sprang  out  and  caught  the  outer  mules,  and  by  vig- 
orous jerking  and  rough  yanking,  iinally  brought 
them  to  a  halt.  They  were  detached  and  tied  up, 
the  wheel  found,  and  by  all  hands  lifted,  replaced  and 
secured  and  we  resumed  the  niDnotonous  trot  and  jolt- 
ing over  the  stones,  none  the  worse  for  the  adven- 
ture, but  with  one  more  experience. 


500  LIFE    AND    TRAVELS 

Tliuiigii  rough  and  uncomfortable,  the  cart  trav- 
eling was  not  wholly  without  interest.  The  bright 
moonlight  enabled  us  to  see  the  villages  and  towns 
on  the  wav,  and  gave  shadowy  sublimity  to  the  stately 
palm  groves  through  which  we  passed.  The  dense 
tangles  of  bushes,  vines  and  creejiers  had  a  softer, 
sweeter  sheen  than  under  the  glare  of  the  noonday 
sun,  and  now  we  remember  that  night's  experience 
with  much  more  kindly  feeling  than  when  we  arrived 
at  the  railroad  station  at  daylight  next  morning,  tired, 
stiif  and  sore,  ready  to  think  hard  thoughts  and  say 
hard  words  about  that  night's  journey.  Once  aboard 
the  cars  in  a  reclining  chair,  we  were  soon  asleep 
and  knew  little  more  of  the  outer  world  until  aroused 
at  Merida  at  10  a.  m.  January  2nth,  1896,  thirty- 
eight  days  out  from  Amo,  Indiana,  and  3,000  miles 
or  more  travel. 

To  be  in  Yucatan,  as  heretofore  expressed,  the 
land  of  wonderful  ruins,  was  one  of  the  ideals  of  early 
life.  It  was  associated  with  Egvpt,  Palestine,  Syria, 
Greece,  Italy,  Ireland,  Sweden  and  the  Land  of  the 
Midnight  Sun  in  all  my  dreams  of  future  achieve- 
ment, all  of  which  I  had  seen,  and  now  in  my  old 
age  my  last  fond  desire  was  gTatified;  its  realization 
filled  me  with  emotion  words  cannot  express.  Of 
course,  I  saw  things  through  a  rose-colored  light  and 
a  charmed    me<lium.      What  to  others    would    have 


OF   ADDISON    COFFIN.  501 

been  of  small  account,  to  my  aroused  imagination 
might  have  had  exaggerated  interest,  were  it  not  that 
the  long,  devious  journey  made  in  getting  there  had 
toned  down  my  enthusiasm,  I  think,  to  a  tolerably 
reasonable  point.  At  all  events,  I  was  glad  I  was 
there  at  last,  and  thanked  the  Lord  for  it. 

Merida  is  a  city  of  50,000  inhabitants,  the  clean- 
est in  all  Mexico  or  Central  America,  with  less  ap- 
pearance of  poverty,  suffering  and  want,  fewer  beg- 
gars, less  drunkenness,  less  idleness  and  loafing 
around  public  places,  I  am  sorry  to  say,  than  our 
own  cities  of  the  same  size.  The  streets  are  unpaved, 
but  are  mostly  on  solid  rock,  but  like  those  of  all  Mex- 
ican cities,  are  narrow,  with  very  narrow  sidewalks. 
Sometimes  a  sudden  rainfall  turns  the  limestone  dust 
into  regular  brick  moitar,  which  for  a  few  hours 
splatters  and  smears  things  terribly,  but  as  a  general 
thing  the  streets  are  clean. 

The  inhabitants  are  the  greatest  objects  of  in- 
terest to  be  found  in  the  city.  Four-fifths  of  them 
are  pure  blood  Mayas,  and  speak  the  Maya  language, 
which  is  distinct  from  the  Aztec,  Toltec,  and  in  fact 
all  languages.  For  aught  we  know,  it  was  the  lan- 
guage of  Adam  and  Seth.  They  are  very  cleanly 
in  their  habits  and  dress.  IN'early  all  wear  light  gar- 
ments; the  men  light  pants,  with  shirt  on  outside, 
confined  by  the  revolver,  knife  and  belt:  all  go  bare- 

32 


502  LIFE    AND    TRAVELS 

footed  or  have  sandals.  The  women  wear  a  flow- 
ing underskirt,  with  the  chemise  on  the  outside  hang- 
ing to  the  knees,  many  of  them  tastefuly  ornamented 
around  the  neek  and  wrists,  with  lace  around  the 
skirt;  the  girls  dress  as  the  women.  The  garments 
of  both  sexes  are  very  appropriate  for  the  climate 
and  business  of  the  people.  They  are  clean  all  over, 
even  to  their  feet,  and  this  too  in  spite  of  the  dujt 
of  the  streets  and  highways.  Many  of  the  high- 
toned  ladies  wear  slippers  when  walking  out,  though 
they  go  barefooted  at  home.  The  ladies  have  a 
charming  appearance  as  they  pass  in  the  bright  sun- 
light with  flowing  garments,  every  adjunct  of  which 
is  so  extremely  neat.  In  the  morning,  when  thous- 
ands of  women  are  in  the  great  market  house,  the 
scene  is  wonderful.  The  women  do  all  the  market- 
ing, and  the  huge,  open  shed  is  a  sea  of  white  gar- 
ments, reddish-brown  faces  and  coal  black  hair,  while 
the  soft  hum  of  voices  makes  it  a  scene  to  be  re- 
membered. Three-fifths  of  Yucatan  is  almost  a  level 
plain,  very  rocky,  imderlaid  with  a  coralline  lime- 
stone formation,  but  with  little  tilt  in  the  bedrock  of 
the  whole  area.  The  highest  point  is  only  seventy- 
five  feet  above  sea  level,  the  average  about  twenty- 
five  feet,  an'd  what  is  more  singular,  there  are  no  rivers 
or  running  streams.  The  water  supply  is  in  large, 
fininel-shaped  sink  holes,  where  the  water  stands  at 


OF    ADDISON    COFFIN.  503 

sea.  level.  All  villages  have  one  or  more  wells  dug 
in  the  solid  rock;  they  are  as  inexhaustible  as  the 
ocean.  This  well  is  to  the  women  and  children  what 
the  saloon  is  to  the  men — the  place  of  general  meet- 
ing, where  all  the  news  and  gossip  is  discussed.  They 
are  generally  in  a  shady  place;  around  these  fountains 
of  water  the  natives  congregate  in  the  cool  of  the 
day.  They  seem  to  live  a  dreamy,  contented  life, 
with  but  little  aspiration,  and  we  soon  learned  to  look 
with  kindly  interest  into  their  clean,  broad  faces  as 
the}'  turned  them  toward  us.  According  to  Ameri- 
caji  ideas  they  are  not  beautiful,  but  they  are  a  lov- 
able race:  their  quiet  civility  is  especially  charming, 
when  compared  with  the  Aztecs  in  the  City  of  Mexico. 
The  Spaniard  did  not  impress  as  much  of  his  Moor- 
i:?h  character  on  the  Mayas  as  on  other  tribes,  and 
they  have  many  distinctive,  redeeming  traits,  which 
have  come  down  from  their  ancient,  grand  civilization. 
The  natives  proudly  sav,  ''We  were  conquered  by  the 
Spaniard,  but  w^e  never  amalgamated  with  our  con- 
querors, as  others  did,''  and  to-day  the  viler  elements 
of  society  are  of  the  mixed  races.  The  more  we  mingle 
with  the  Mayas,  the  more  convinced  we  were  that 
they  are  the  parent  race  of  Central  America  and  Yu- 
catan— the  cradle  of  American  civilization.  If  not  of 
the  world.  There  is  more  evidence  that  the  Egyp- 
tian was  copiefl  from  the  ^laya  than  the  Maya  from 


504  LIFE    AND    TRAVELS 

the  Egyptian,  and  just  now  there  is  no  place  better 
suited  to  furnish  material  for  plausible  theories  of 
the  origin  of  civilization  than  Yucatan. 

Merida  stands  on  the  site  of  an  ancient  city,  and 
the  great  pyi'amid  furnished  a  large  amount  of  build- 
ing material.  The  conqueroi*s  erected  a  strong  fort 
on  the  ruins,  enclosing  a  church  and  other  buildings 
now  falling  into  decay.  The  limestone  is  still  abun- 
dant, notwithstanding  the  vast  quantity  used  in  the 
immense  ruins.  The  city  of  Merida  is  built  of  this 
rough  stone;  the  houses  are  plastered  in  the  irmer 
courts,  and  cliaml)ers,  concreted  and  painted  white 
on  the  outside.  At  noonday  the  reflection  from  the 
whited  walls  is  almost  blinding  to  the  foreigner,  but 
at  night,  beneath  the  brilliant  electric  light,  the  ef- 
fect is  magical  and  the  evenings  on  the  great  plaza 
are  most  enjoyable. 

We  had  letters  of  introduction  to  our  consul, 
Robert  Oliver,  and  by  him  were  introduced  to  ex- 
consul  Dr.  Edward  W.  Thompson,  who  is  making 
a  life  work  of  studying  the  ruins  of  Yucatan  and 
adjoining  states,  collecting  relics  of  the  prehistoric 
ages,  and  taking  casts  and  impressions  of  the  picture 
writing  and  other  hieroglyphics,  of  which  he  is  mak- 
ing a  grand  success.  To  have  had  the  privilege  of  con- 
versing with  him  and  seeing  his  sanctum,  his  mar- 
velous curios,  such  as  paintings,  photographs  and  ob- 


OF    ADDISON    COFFIN.  505 

jects  of  scientific  interest,  was  alone  worth  a  trip 
from  Indiana  to  Merida.  His  enlarged  photographs 
show  the  ruins  with  almost  the  same  clearness  as  if 
standing  in  the  sunlight  before  the  originals.  He 
did  most  of  the  work  of  preparing  the  exhibit  of  the 
ruins  at  the  World's  Fair  at  Chicago.  He  has  a  com- 
plete copy  of  the  only  history  of  the  Maya  race  that 
has  escaped  the  destruction  of  the  Spaniards,  and 
he  has  succeeded  in  deciphering  many  passages  in  the 
book. 

We  spent  a  week  at  Merida  studying  the  people. 
My  niece  gave  a  great  deal  of  her  time  to  the 
language,  the  pronunciation,  intonation,  etc.,  for 
though  the  Spanish  was  the  public  and  state  language, 
the  natives  spoke  the  Maya  among  themselves.  Our 
housekeeping  was  an  interesting  feature  of  our 
stay.  Julia  purchased  an  outfit,  including  an  al- 
cohol stove,  for  $3.92.  The  alcohol  for  a  day's  cook- 
ing cost  five  cents.  Our  utensils  could  all  be  put 
into  a  three-gallon  bucket  or  market  basket.  We 
rented  a  room  in  the  middle  of  a  large  building  where 
the  heat  did  not  penetrate.  It  was  24x30,  and 
twenty-five  feet  from  floor  to  ceiling;  it  was  lighted 
by  a  skylight.  We  bought  bread  from  the  baker, 
coffee  ready  ground  from  the  mill,  Irish  and  sweet 
potatoes,  small  heads  of  cabbage,  turnips,  eggs  and 
fruit  in  the  market.     We  brought  with  us  canned 


506  LIFE    AND    TRAVELS 

butter,  meat,  milk  and  koney.  The  rent  of  the  room 
was  sixty  cents  a  day,  while  our  food  cost  twenty- 
eight  to  thirty-two  cents  per  day.  The  most  enjoy- 
able i^art  was  watching  the  cooking  on  the  minia- 
ture stove  with  its  tiny,  blue  blaze.  When  one  came 
out  of  the  dust  and  heat  of  a  long  walk,  this  house- 
keeping wa^  as  delightful  as  camping  in  the  moun- 
tains or  the  plains  of  the  far  north.  AVe  gathered 
all  the  information  we  could  about  the  towns  and 
villages  we  proposed  to  visit,  besides  taking  note  of 
the  habits  of  the  people  who  came  to  the  city  market 
from  distant  places.  Sometimes  we  picked  up  items 
of  gossip  that  were  of  value  to  us  in  other  places. 

On  the  3rd  of  February,  1896,  we  started,  in 
company  with  Dr.  Edward  Thompson,  for  Izmal,  the 
end  of  the  railroad,  on  the  trip  to  Chichen-Itza  ruins, 
one  of  our  objective  points.  To  get  there  we  must 
travel  120  miles,  though  as  the  crow  flies  it  was  only 
100  miles  away.  We  left  most  of  our  luggage  in 
the  city,  the  doctor  having  made  ample  provision 
by  the  way  and  at  his  splendid  mansion  at  the  ruins, 
which  are  located  on  his  72,000  acres,  purchased  from 
an  old  Spanish  family.  The  doctor  had  given  us 
due  notice  that  there  would  be  no  soft  places  on  the 
trip,  that  there  would  be  rough  carting,  rough  fare, 
heat  and  hard  (dimbing  all  along  the  way,  but  the 
object  in   view  would  repay  all  the  privation.      The 


OF    ADDISON    COFFIN.  507 

railroad  travel  was  to  be  done  by  day,  but  much  of 
the  carting  by  night,  to  a\^oid  the  heat  and  dust. 
Traveling  by  night  is  a  national  custom,  and  it  is 
often  done  from  choice.  In  all  our  night  travel 
we  met  or  passed  more  people  than  by  day.  Vege- 
tables and  fruit  are  taken  to  market  during  the  night, 
the  street  cars  in  Merida  run  until  after  nudnight  all 
the  time,  and  in  hot  weather  all  night.  Men  and 
mules  seem  made  for  night  travel  in  Yucatan,  as  the 
Arab  of  the  desert. 

We  were  now  down  to  really  solid  work,  and 
started  out  with  minds,  eyes  and  ears  on  the  alert 
for  all  that  passed  before  us.  By  this  time  Mis^ 
Ballinger  was  full  of  enthusiasm,  and  in  eager  antici- 
pation of  the  things  which  we  were  to  view  in  the 
wonder  land.  Soon  after  leaving  the  city,  we  ran 
into  a  region  devoted  to  the  cultivation  of  the  sisal 
plant,  from  which  is  manufactured  our  light-colored 
ropes  and  binder  twine  of  the  farmer.  Tliere  were 
tens  of  thousands  of  agres  of  that  singular  plant.  In 
leaf  it  resembles  the  century  plant,  but  grows  up  like 
a  cabbage  stalk  or  dwarf  palm,  with  lanceolate  leaves 
four  to  six  feet  long,  terminating  in  a  sharp,  thorny 
spike.  The  sisal  farms  have  a  very  forbidding  look, 
wholly  different  from  anything  in  the  States  or  any- 
where else.  To  strangers  it  looks  like  desolation  and 
starvation,  but  we  soon  learned  to  regard  it  with  in- 


508  LIFE    AND    TRAVELS 

terest,  for  along  the  railroad,  opposite  the  large  farms, 
are  platforms  piled  up  with  bales  of  sisal  fibre  like 
cotton  bales.  Tram  cars  drawn  by  nniles  run  back 
and  forth  from  the  factories  in  the  middle  of  the  farm. 

A  farm  which  w^orks  two  hundred  hands  will 
yield  two  thousand  dollars  net  profit  per  month  all 
the  year.  The  value  of  a  farm  is  not  estimated  by 
the  number  of  acres  of  land,  but  by  the  number 
of  men  employed.  Where  ten  men  do  the  work,  the 
plantation  is  worth  $10,000,  and  so  on;  one  that  re- 
quires one  hundred  men  is  valued  at  $100,000,  with- 
out regard  to  the  quantity  of  land  owned.  The  es- 
timate is  made  as  to  the  quantity  under  actual  pro- 
ductive cultivation;  one  man  represents  $1,000  of  in- 
vested capital. 

The  harvesting  of  sisal  is  continuous  from  day 
to  day.  When  the  long,  slim  leaves  begin  to  droop 
and  stand  at  right  angles  to  the  trunk,  they  are  cut 
oif  with  a  knife  much  like  an  Indian  corn  knife, 
bound  in  bundles,  and  carried  to  the  factory  on  the 
backs  of  men  and  donkeys;  sometimes  carts  are  used 
for  long  distances.  The  leaves  are  run  between 
heavy  iron  rollers  to  squeeze  out  the  acrid  juice,  then 
it  goes  through  a  mill  similar  to  a  thresher,  which 
cleans  the  long,  white  fibre,  which  is  baled  like  cot- 
ton and  shipped  to  all  manufacturing  countries,  and 
it  will  soon  supercede    hemp  in  the    market  of  the 


OF    ADDISON    COFFIN.  509 

world.  About  the  time  we  had  become  interested  in 
the  sisal  farming,  we  ran  into  a  corn  belt,  where 
corn  was  the  standard  production.  Here  again  all 
was  new,  and  in  contradiction  to  former  ideas  or 
belief.  It  is  not  planted  in  rows,  is  not  cultivated, 
but  is  planted  on  ground  so  stony  that  it  looks  im- 
possible for  it  to  grow.  In  fact,  everything  is  so 
contradictory  that  we  hardly  knew  what  to  think 
about  it.  A  body  of  thick  forest  land  is  ''slashed" 
down  when  in  full  leaf;  in  a  month  or  two  it  becomes 
dry  and  is  burned  off,  making  a  large  fire  and  burn- 
ing even  the  stumps.  The  loose  stones  are  partly 
calcined  and  the  first  shower  of  rain  leaves  them 
white  as  snow\  The  lime  disengaged  with  the  ashes 
of  the  burning  furnishes  abundant  plant  food.  The 
corn  planter,  armed  with  an  iron-pointed  staff,  goes 
forth  and  thrusts  his  iron  spike  into  the  ground 
wherever  he  can  find  a  place  or  it  is  possible  to  do 
so  among  the  loose  stones,  and  into  the  hole  he  drops 
four  grains,  pressing  them  down  with  his  feet,  and 
the  work  is  done  until  gathering  time.  As  there  is 
no  need  of  cultivation,  rows  or  regularity  is  not  a  ne- 
cessity. The  first  and  second  years  there  is  a  yield 
of  thirty  to  thirty-six  bushels  per  acre ;  the  third  y ear 
a  few  weeds  and  bushes  appear,  and  the  yield  is 
twenty-five  bushels;  the  fourth  year  the  bushes  are 
thick  and  strong,  and  twenty    bushels  is  the  yield. 


510  LIFE    AND    TRAVELS 

After  that  they  are  suffered  to  grow  into  a  forest,  and 
then  ''slashed"  again,  and  so  it  has  been  going  on  for 
centuries,  and  so  it  will  ])e  while  present  civilization 
continues.  There  is  no  necessity  for  cribbing  the 
corn;  it  ripens  at  the  beginning  o^'  the  dry  season, 
and  will  keep  in  the  field  as  well  as  in  the  crib.  If 
it  falls  down  on  the  dry,  naked  stones  it  does  no  in- 
jury, so  the  natives  get  their  staff  of  life  with  little  ef- 
fort and  naturally  grow  indolent. 

Although  we  delighted  in  watching  the  affairs 
of  rural  life  by  the  wayside,  other  things  thickened 
around  us  and  attracted  our  attention.  Off  in  the 
fields  and  looming  up  out  of  the  langled  forests,  great 
pyramids  were  seen  standing  alone  or  in  groups.  In 
the  stone  walls  that  enclosed  the  fields  and  village 
gardens,  in  the  houses  of  the  towns,  we  saw  fragments 
of  carved  stones,  broken  columns  and  ornamented 
pillars,  parts  of  mutilated  statues  and  other  remains 
of  ruined  buildings,  all  of  which  told  us  we  were 
among  the  scenes  of  prehistoric  life.  In  one  place 
we  passed  a  group  of  seven  mounds  from  twenty  to 
thirty  feet  high;  then  a  mile  away  the  glass  revealed 
a  pyramid  in  the  midst  of  another  group.  A  break 
in  the  forest  showed  other  still  farther  away  on  the 
other  side.  Sometimes  the  road  was  cut  through  a 
mound,  showing  the  peculiar  construction  and  dura- 
bility.     The    thorny  jungle  and  tangled  forest    was 


OF    ADDISON    COFFIN.  511 

tilled  witli  trees,  vines,  Howers  and  berries  in  every 
glade  and  cove,  while  rare  birds,  with  beautiful  plum- 
age and  songs,  were  everywhere  seen  and  heard,  and 
all  were  new  to  us. 

Dr.  Thompson  was  fandliar  with  the  road  and 
the  surroundings,  and  in  a  few  brief  words  could  give 
-a  whole  volume  of  information,  in  well-chosen  con- 
trasts with  countries  and  things  we  had  both  seen, 
for  he,  too,  had  been  a  traveler,  with  eyes  to  see  and 
ears  to  hear  and  a  retentive  memory  and  fluent  tongue, 
with  a  perfect  mastery  of  the  Spanish  and  other  civ- 
ilized languages,  as  well  as  of  the  Maya,  spoken  by 
the  free  tribes  of  the  interior.  Before  reaching  Iza- 
nial,  sixty-two  nules  from  Merida,  I  learned  the  signs 
that  indicated  the  neighborhood  of  gTcat  ruins;  all 
the  loose  stones  of  a  certain  size  and  shape  were  picked 
up  in  field  and  forest,  sometimes  for  miles  around. 
It  was  5  p.  m.  when  we  landed  at  Izamal,  the  end  of 
the  rail,  too  late  to  make  any  tour  of  the  neighboriug 
ruins,  so  we  took  an  early  supper  an«l  were  ushered  into 
a  long,  narrow  room,  thirty  feet  from  paved  floor  to  the 
ceiling,  which  consisted  of  joists  of  large,  peeled  poles 
covered  with  a  net  work  of  small  branches,  which  in 
turn  was  covered  by  a  concrete  roof  nearly  a  foot 
thick  that  was  proof  against  rain  and  heat,  and  as 
time  went  on  it  l)ecaine  hard  as  stone  and  had  a 
metallic   ring   when   struck   witlh   a   hanuner.      Ham- 


512  LIFE    AND    TRAVELS 

mocks  were  swung  across  the  room  too  high  for  fleas 
to  jump  or  for  the  dogs  to  rear  up  and  smell  our 
faces.  Into  these  we  climl>ed  and  wrapped  in  our 
blankets,  slept  until  the  clock  in  the  old  cathedral 
struck  four,  when  we  arose  and  had  earlv  coffee  and 
were  out  by  daylight.  Dr.  Thompson  went  to  look 
for  a  cart,  Julia  and  I  to  ex])lore  the  surround- 
ings, going  first  to  a  very  large,  fortified  ca- 
thedral built  by  the  Spaniards  with  material  from 
th€  ruins  in  and  near  the  town.  It  is  a  very  mas- 
sive building,  surrounded  with  string  walls  and  en- 
filading towers,  which  could  have  stood  quite  a  siege 
against  the  guns  of  that  period.  It  is  now  falling 
into  decay,  only  a  small  portion  being  used  for  ser- 
vice. The  lookout  from  the  battlements  showed  the 
town  and  its  vicinity.  From  there  we  walked  across 
the  town  some  distance  to  the  great  mound  of  Izamal, 
which  rises  up  from  the  plain  in  proportion  and  ap- 
proaching in  size  that  of  Cholula.  It  is  mound- 
shaped,  with  a  projection  from  the  center  extending 
westward.  The  body  of  the  mound  is  solid  concrete, 
cased  with  hewn  stone.  The  extension  is  not  so  high, 
and  is  an  immense  pile  of  bowlders  laid  solidly  to- 
gether witli  mortar  or  cement,  and  about  eighty 
feet  high.  The  ascent  is  by  rough  stone  steps  at  the 
west  end  of  the  projection,  and  very  much  broken. 
We  walked   along  the   center   to   the   main    mound, 


OF    ADDISON    COFFIN.  518 

which  we  ascended  by  steps,  not  so  badly  broken,  a 
hundred  and  twenty  feet.  On  top  we  found  a  level 
area,  paved  with  large,  well-dressed  flag  stones,  with 
grooves  running  across  as  if  to  convey  water.  The 
rough  climbing  and  singular  construction  of  the  ruin 
took  our  attention  so  completely  that  we  forgot  to 
look  around  until  we  stood  upon  the  summit.  Then 
we  became  oblivious  as  to  how  or  by  whom  it  was 
built,  for  the  scene  was  so  grand  that  we  lacked  words 
to  describe  our  emotions  and  for  a  time  stood  in 
solemn  silence.  We  looked  off  in  every  direction 
over  a  boundless  expanse  of  living  green,  like  an 
ocean  suddenly  hushed  to  silence  and  rest.  It  is  truly 
one  of  the  world's  beautiful  pictures.  Scattered 
over  all  were  little  white  villages  as  on  a  map,  but 
four-fifths  was  an  unbroken  forest,  save  where  green 
mounds  of  tr-ees  rose  up  as  islands  out  of  the  water, 
marking  the  sight  of  other  ruins  hidden  away  in  the 
great  forest  from  the  outside  world,  possibly  all  as 
large  as  the  one  on  which  we  stood,  which  covered 
three  or  four  acres,  while  many  seen  on  the  hori- 
zon's utmost  verge  seemed  even  in  the  distance  higher 
and  more  vast  in  extent.  We  gazed  long,  with  eager 
eyes  and  active  memory  upon  the  dazzling  scene, 
bathed  in  the  sunlight  of  the  early  morning,  think- 
ing, thinking,  thinking,  then  with  glad  hearts  de- 
.scended  and  made  preparation  to  meet  the  ordeal  of 


514  LIFE    AND    TRAVELS 

the  cart  ride  oi  fortv-five  miles  tliat  was  allotted  for 
that  day's  work. 

At  9  a.  m.  we  mounted  the  niugh  cart  and 
rumbled  off  over  the  uneven  road,  going  southeast, 
and  everv  mile  the  road  seemed  to  grow  worse  and 
the  heat  and  dust  greater,  but  fortunately  the  wind 
was  in  our  faces,  so  we  escaped  mo«t  of  the  blind- 
ing dust.  The  timber  grew  taller  and  thicker,  the 
large,  funnel-shaped  sink  holes  became  frequent,  and 
many  held  water;  the  country  was  more  undulat- 
ing. Immense  lizards  were  seen  running  across  the 
road  or  looked  at  the  procession  from  the  jungle  with 
brilliant  eyes,  while  new  trees,  flowers  and  bird« 
continued  to  come  into  view.  At  noon  we  reached 
the  relay  and  stopped  an  hour  for  lunch.  The  docr 
tor  stretched  a  hammock  for  me,  while  Julia 
prepared  hot  coffee,  and  in  Ave  minutes  I  was 
asleep  like  a  tired  child  and  had  a  good  rest.  After 
lunch  we  rumbled  on  through  an  ever-changing  suc- 
cession of  contrasting  contradictions.  At  5  p.  m. 
we  came  to  the  end  of  the  cart  line,  worn  and  sore. 
We  spent  the  night  in  the  native  village  in  ham- 
mocks, and  slept  soundly  till  early  morning,  when 
the  doctor  was  astir  so  as  to  have  an  early  start. 
He  had  horses  prepared  for  the  trip,  with  two  native 
footmen  and  a  pack  horse.  By  5  a.  m.  we  were  in 
the  saddle  and  moving  out  in  single  file  along  a  nar- 


OF    ADDISON    COFFIN.  515 

row,  pack-horse  trail,  tlirougli  deep  woods,  the  doc- 
tor in  front,  then  Julia,  then  i  came  with  the 
footman  aif  rear  guard.  The  trail  was  winding 
and  rough,  over  ridges,  loose  bowlders  and  tangled 
thickets,  and  alongside  a  few  corn  holds.  For  sev- 
eral hours  it  was  a  delightfully  roni:intic  ride.  We 
were  in  touch  with  nature  in  a  multitude  of  new 
forms,  and  we  realized  more  and  more  that  we  were 
beyond  the  frost  line  amid  pei-petual  green.  At  one 
place,  swaying  in  the  Avind  from  the  tree  tops,  were 
nests  of  the  tree  ant,  shaped  like  a  large  hornet's 
nest,  with  the  big  end  dowmward,  while  close  beside 
the  path  were  many  giant  sisal  stalks,  one  sixty  feet 
high  supposed  to  be  fifty  or  more  years  old.  On  the 
side  of  trees  were  wasps'  nests,  shaped  like  birds  with 
one  wing  extended  and  wing  feathers  so  perfectly 
imitated  that  at  first  we  thought  they  were  birds  as 
big  as  crows.  All  along  the  path  and  in  the  woods 
are  holes  in  the  rock  and  openings  into  caves  of  all 
sizes  and  shapes,  while  occasionally  we  would  come 
unexpectedly  on  scvme  relic  or  reminder  of  prehis- 
toric life,  where  all  was  now  silent  and  desolate. 

Toward  noon  we  stopped  at  a  Maya  hut  for  lunch 
and  to  rest.  It  was  in  the  midst  of  the  forest  and 
by  a  deep-water  hole.  While  looking  at  the  hut  and 
its  lonely  situation  we  were  startled  and  amazed  to 
see  a  Mava  woman  sit  down  bv  the  side  of  the  door 


516  LIFE    AND    TRAVELS 

and  begin  to  spin  thread  just  as  they  did  in  Egypt 
in  the  days  of  Abraham.  She  had  a  wooden  spindle 
about  nine  inches  long,  which  she  stood  in  a  small 
earthen  cup;  then  she  drew  a  thread  of  cotton  fibre 
out  about  a  yard.  She  held  it  to  the  spindle  and 
t\\irled  it  mth  the  fingers  of  her  right  hand  very 
rapidly.  When  the  thread  was  twisted  the  spindle 
was  reversed  and  the  thread  wound  on  it.  This  con- 
tinued twenty  or  twenty-five  minutes,  when  the  spin- 
dle was  full,  as  in  spinning  on  a  big  wheel  in  the 
old  days.  The  woman  then  stood  the  spindle  be- 
tween her  toes  and  reeled  the  thread  into  a  skein  on 
her  hand,  running  the  surplus  twist  back  and  cor- 
recting all  blemishes  and  defects.  The  thread  was 
AS  perfect  as  the  best  machine  thread  of  the  commerce 
of  to-day.  She  could  easily  have  spun  six  cuts  per 
day,  as  our  mothers  used  to  count.  To  find  this  lost 
art  in  a  Maya  hut  in  the  forests  of  Yucatan  was  more 
than  we,  or  even  Dr.  Thompson,  expected.  I  had 
to  think  more  than  once  and  handle  the  yarn  with 
my  own  hands  before  it  was  set  as  a  fact  of  real  life. 
The  doctor  had  the  w^oman  spin  another  broach,  and 
then  purchased  the  whole  outfit  for  his  museum  at 
Chicago.  As  the  woman  sat  spinning  in  that  door 
way,  she  looked  as  though  she  might  have  been  the 
model  from  which  the  paintings  in  Egypt  were  taken 
four  thousand  years  ago,   and  she  was  the  perfect 


OF    ADDISON    COFFIN.  517 

living  picture  of  Alaya  woiiicii  painted  seven  to  ten 
thousand  years  ago  in  the  inner  chambers  of  Yuca- 
tan and  Canipeche  ruins.  We  resumed  our  journey 
with  new  thoughts  and  strange  emotions,  for  it  seemed 
as  though  we  had  seen  a  vision  of  the  buried  past 
and  our  minds  were  being  prepared  for  revolutions 
in  thought,  which  were  near  at  hand.  The  after- 
noon was  oppressively  warm,  and  I  became  quite 
tired,  but  held  out  until  nearly  the  end  of  the  trip, 
llien  I  dismounted,  turned  my  horse  loose  to  keep 
his  })lace  in  line,  and  being  in  my  native  element 
on  foot,  1  walked  on  with  little  inconvenience.  The 
doctor  and  Julia  protested  against  leaving  me 
behind,  but  seeing  1  moved  all  right,  they  rode  on. 
In  ten  minutes  I  came  in  full  view  of  the  castle 
pyramid  of  Chichen-Itza  ruins,  one  of  the  grandest 
of  all.  The  sight  of  it  took  the  weariness  out  of 
my  limbs,  tilled  my  head  and  heart  with  new  life, 
and  in  due  time^  I  reached  the  Hacienda.  Though 
1  had  been  tired,  hot  and  hungry,  I  was  far  from 
being  spent,  and  a  good  hot  supper  and  native  coffee 
set  me  all  right,  and  we  had  a  very  pleasant  even- 
ing amid  tine  surroundings. 

In  the  cool  of  the  morning  we  started  out  with 
Dr.  lliompson  in  tlie  lead.  In  passing  over  a  rough 
ridge  we  could  hear  the  picks  of  eight  men  under- 
ground,  excavating   sand   that   was   very   white   and 

83 


518  LIFE    AND    TRAVELS 

chalky,  but  of  great  value  in  plastering.  The  first 
ruin  visited  was  a  long,  massive  building,  tolerably 
well  preserved.  Its  many  low,  dark  chambers  were 
covered  with  hieroglyphics,  giving  it  the  name  of 
the  House  of  Dark  Writing;  it  is  massive  and  gloomy, 
though  of  great  interest.  The  next  was  the  House 
of  the  Xuns;  in  1842  Gorman  called  this  the  House 
of  Cacique.  It  is  a  huge  building  of  peculiar  form, 
and  elaborate  in  its  arrangement  of  chambers.  On 
rhp  outsi<le  it  is  ornamented  in  a  marvelous  man- 
ner. The  angles  have  been  tastefully  carved  and 
adorned  with  stone  hooks  and  rings;  raised  lines  of 
drapery  run  around  the  sides;  over  the  doors  are  beau- 
tiful female  figures,  surrounded  by  a  variety  of  finely- 
executed  borders,  encircled  v^th  wreaths.  Some  of 
tlie  figures  have  head  dresses  of  feathers  and  tassels, 
^lany  of  the  facades  are  highly  decorated  with  square 
blocks  of  stone,  apparently  cut  with  the  most  per- 
fect instrument.  Other  ornaments  are  attached  to 
the  wall  by  a  shaft.  The  body  of  the  building  is 
made  of  solid  concrete,  cased  with  finely-hewn  slabs 
of  limestone,  some  of  them  highly  carved.  Their 
outer  easing  adheres  to  the  concrete  as  firmly  as  if 
they  were  one  and  the  same  mass;  the  concrete  seems 
to  be  imperishable. 

Everv^  part  of  the  ornamentation  of  the  build- 
ing is  different  from  anything  of  the  kind  seen  else- 


OP    ADDISON    COFFIN.  519 

where.  The  wonderful  beauty  of  the  cornice  and 
exquisite  molding  is  original,  and  belongs  exclusively 
to  Yucatan.  Nowhere  in  the  world  do  we  lind  more 
perfect  architecture  or  more  refined  ideals.  In  say- 
ing this  for  the  House  of  Nuns,  I  say  it  for  all  others. 
On  the  north  side  is  a  flight  of  small,  stone  steps,  which 
leads  to  the  top,  forty  feet  from  the  pavement.  The 
area  of  the  summit  platform  is  an  oblong  square,  one 
hundred  and  seventy  feet  long;  in  the  center  is  a 
range  of  chambers  occupying  two-thirds  of  the  space. 
They  are  twenty-five  feet  high.  These  rooms  are 
cased  with  carved  stones  and  plastered  inside  with 
a  very  fine,  white  plaster,  covered  with  paintings, 
symbolic  and  hieroglyphic  writing.  Though  many 
of  the  rooms  are  now  much  broken,  yet  the  fragments 
give  evidence  of  their  marvelous  beauty  when  they 
were  perfect. 

Near  the  eastern  front  of  the  main  building  are 
two  small,  single-room  buildings,  both  elaborately 
ornamented  with  original  designs  of  people,  birds, 
wreaths  and  flowers,  everywhere  interlined  with  hie- 
roglyphics. In  front  of  these  buildings  are  pillars, 
while  all  around  for  many  rods  are  heaps  of  hewn 
and  broken  stones,  sculptured  work,  such  as  carved 
images  in  sitting  posture,  others  broken  and  fallen. 
In  fact,  the  whole  forest  is  full  of  wreckage  of  once 
beautiful  buildings;  we  cannot  turn  over  a  slabstone 


520  LIFE    AND    TRAVELS 

but  fresli  beauties  meet  our  eyes.  Xo  one  can  walk 
among  suck  scenes  without  learning  new  lessons  of 
humanity. 

We  next  passed  a  large  ruin  with  a  central  dome 
rising  high  above  a  mass  of  broken  walls  and  crum- 
bling chambers  that  once  must  hstxe  been  a  marvel 
of  architectural  beauty  and  originality.  Further  on 
toward  the  north  we  passed  a  very  large,  deej^water 
hole,  which  had  been  the  great  central  fountain  for 
the  water  supply  of  untold  thousands;  it  stood  at  sea 
level,  and  w^as  inexhaustible.  AVe  next  approached 
the  castle  pyramid,  the  central  figure  of  Chichen- 
Itza,   but   we  postponed  climbing  until  the  morrow. 

We  crossed  the  great  terrace,  covering  an  area 
of  five  to  seven  acres,  in  circular  form  and  one  thous- 
and feet  in  diameter,  to  the  temple  or  Tennis  Court, 
a  great  ruin  tw^o  stories  high,  and  with  connecting 
walls  four  hundred  feet  long  with  double  rows  of 
chambers.  We  now  went  north  into  the  forest  to 
see  a  recent  discovery.  At  first  it  seemed  a  shapeless 
mass,  but  many  long,  hewn  stones,  witli  unusually 
elaborate  carving,  indicated  it  was  a  place  of  inter- 
est. By  running  a  tunnel  into  the  mass,  strange 
things  were  found.  First  a  stone  mortar  thirty  inches 
deep,  twenty-four  across,  with  a  close-fitting,  carved 
stone  cover  six  inches  thick,  in  a  })erfect  state  of  pres- 
ervation.    It  had  been  filled  with  something  which 


OF    ADDISON    COFFIN.  521 

tlie  shrewd  tinder  did  not  see  fit  to  make  public.      In 

a  vast  number  of  cone-shaped .  dressed  stones 

eight  inches  in  diameter  at  the  large  end,  tapering 
to  a  point,  and  three  and  a  half  feet  long,  were  found 
standing  on  end^  packed  closely  and  covered  with  a 
mass  of  concrete;  above  this  had  been  a  circle  of 
chambers.  What  this  stone  safe,  as  we  may  call  it, 
contained,  and  why  those  conical  stones  should  be 
so  securely  hidden  away,  are  mysteries  we  cannot 
know  until  further  discoveries  are  made. 

From  this  strange  spot  we  went  far  into  the 
dark  forest  to  a  secret  fountain,  where  living  human 
offerings  were  made  to  the  rain  god  in  cases  of  extreme 
drought.  It  was  a  deep,  dark,  ^vater-hole,  completely 
hidden  by  the  rocks  and  forest.  There  were  heavy;, 
stone  chambers  near  the  pool,  where  the  devotees  pre- 
pared for  the  last  act.  When  a  sacrifice  was  deemed 
absolutely  necessary  a  number  of  priests  offered  them- 
selves, then  an  equal  number  of  virgins  also  volun- 
teered. On  the  solemn  day,  and  at  the  appointed 
hour,  the  priests  would  take  the  virgins  in  their  arms 
and  throw  themselves  into  the  dark  ])ool,  and  so  go 
down  to  death;  the  fall  was  nearly  sixty  feet  and  the 
water  very  deep.  In  this  day  of  achievement,  a  div- 
ing bell  may  some  time  make  startling  revelations  from 
that  pool.  My  niece.  Miss  Ballinger,  and  I  were  two" 
out  of  three  of  the  only  white  ])eople  who  liave  seen 


522  LIFE    AND    TRAVELS 

that  dismal  spot  in  more  than  hitj  jears,  if  not  for  a 
much  greater  period,  and  we  could  not  find  it  again 
without  much  hunting,  nor  would  we  under  any  cir- 
cumstances abuse  the  confidence  imposed  in  us.  By 
a  break  in  the  dense  forest  we  saw  looming  up  the 
castle  pyramid,  and  were  safe  again.  We  returned 
to  the  mansion  by  another  route  than  the  one  by 
which  we  went.  Our  hearts  were  overflowing  with 
silent  wonder  and  thankfulness  to  the  Lord  for  per- 
mitting us  to  see  these  things.  The  amount  of  walk- 
ing, climbing  and  creeping  we  had  done  would  under 
ordinary  circumstances  have  been  exhausting,  but 
we  still  felt  brave,  though  '.omewhat  weary.  A  good 
hot  dinner  soon  restored  our  strength  and  courage. 

We  lay  down  for  a  time  to  rest  the  body  and 
arrange  the  world  of  new  thoughts,  impressions  and 
revolutionary  ideas  that  were  crowding  our  minds. 
We  began  to  realize  of  how  little  humanity  knows 
of  what  wonderful  things  are  in  the  world.  In  the 
cool  of  the  evening  Miss  Julia  and  I  went  out 
to  the  House  of  the  Nuns  again  and  examined  its 
chambers  and  exterior  once  more,  and  we  again 
walked  over  and  among  the  broken  and  scattered 
j'emaiiis  of  the  former  tower  and  temple.  Later  on 
we  climbed  the  steps  to  the  highest  point  of  the 
central  chambers  to  see  the  sun  go  down.  It  was 
a  grand  scene;  we  seemed  to  stand  on  an  island  in 


OF    ADDISON    COFFIN.  623 

tlie  midst  of  a  green,  silent  sea,  which  had  no  limit 
but  the  horizon.  As  the  last  rays  of  sunlight  sank 
into  that  sea,  a  solemn  stillness  fell  over  the  wide 
expanse,  the  noise  of  the  day  ceased  and  the  hum 
of  the  night  had  not  begim — it  was  a  stillness  that 
entered  the  soul  and  gave  it  rest.  As  darkness  gath- 
ered around  we  descended  and  returned  to  the  man- 
sion, thinking  of  the  past  and  of  the  millions  who 
had  borne  their  brief  burden  of  life  and  departed, 
leaving  these  stupendous  wrecks  to  tell  their  story. 

After  supper  w^e  spent  some  hours  in  listening 
to  the  doctor's  account  of  his  nine  years'  residence 
in  the  country  and  his  many,  long  journeys  through- 
out Yucatan  and  other  Mexican  states,  Guatemala 
and  Central  America  in  search  of  new^  ruins,  exam- 
ining and  photographing  those  already  known;  of 
his  adventures,  dangers,  trials  and  escapes,  his  bat- 
tles with  tigers,  serpents,  savage  desperadoes  and  hos- 
tile natives,  his  sufferings  from  hunger  and  thirst 
on  his  journeys  through  trackless  forests  and  tangled 
jungles,  being  lost  among  the  kgoons  and  swamps, 
barely  escaping  with  liis  life,  etc.  Listening  to  and 
discussing  these  adventures  made  us  unconscious  of 
time,  and  hours  would  pass  unheeded,  until  Julia, 
who  was  always  in  the  chair,  woiild  declare  the  meet- 
ing adjourned. 

On  the  second  morning  we  started  early  wdiile 


524  LIFE    AND    TRAVELS 

it  was  cool^  directing  our  steps  toward  the  Castle 
pyramid,  intending  to  ascend  on  the  west  side  while 
shaded  from  the  hot  sun.  On  the  way  the  doctor 
turned  aside  to  show  us  a  life-sized  ligure  of  a  tiger, 
cut  in  the  surface  of  the  solid  rock.  Trom  the  chisel- 
ing, it  had  been  don©  a  long  time,  and  probably 
marked  the  spot  where  the  animal  had  been  killed 
in  a  fierce  battle.  Cattle  pyramid  stands  on  a  terrace 
twenty  to  forty  feet  high.  As  heretofore  stated,  it 
is  the  grand,  central  figure  of  the  gToup,  and  is  in 
the  southeast  portion  of  the  great  circle,  one  thous- 
and feet  in  diameter.  It  is  built  of  concrete,  cased 
on  the  outside  with  large,  hewn  stones,  and  stands 
with  the  cardinal  point  at  a  variation  of  twelve  de- 
grees east  of  our  present  meridian.  It  measures  five 
hundred  and  fifty  feet  at  its  base.  On  the  east  and 
north  side  are  flights  of  narrow  stone  steps;  on  the 
southwest  they  are  broken  up  by  gradations  of  about 
four  feet,  then  recede  about  three  feet.  The  steps 
on  the  south  and  west  are  much  broken,  making  rough 
climbing.  On  the  south  and  west  front  have  been 
many  small  chambers,  accessible  by  the  gradations 
in  the  steps. 

The  pyramid  terminates  in  a  rectangular  area 
in  the  center  of  which  is  a  chambered  edifice  one 
hundred  and  seventy  feet  long,  twenty  high  and  forty 
wide.      Around  the  structure  was  a  broad,  level,  prom- 


OF    ADDISON    COFFIN.  525 

c^iiacle,  paved  with  solid  stone,  still  in  a  good  state  of 
preservation.  Down  eaeli  angle  of  the  pyramid  an 
immense  stone  seri)ent  has  been  constructed  tiiie  to 
life,  with  it^  tail  on  the  summit  and  its  head  rest- 
ing on  a  S(}uare  block  of  stone,  with  wide-open  mouth 
and  protruding  tongue,  and  double  rows  of  teeth. 
Sections  of  these  huge  serpents  have  fallen  out  and 
lay  at  the  base,  but  enough  remains  in  place  to  show 
the  symmetry  and  perfection  of  the  work.  Each  side 
of  the  four  flights  of  steps,  raised  four  feet  high,  are 
serpents  with  o])en  mouths,  as  at  the  angles,  seem- 
ingly to  protect  the  ascent.  Some  of  these  are  still 
in  place,  some  have  fallen,  and  one  is  gone.  The 
chambers  in  the  crowning  building  are  wonders  that 
baffle  all  iefforts  to  describe.  They  are  finished  in 
white  stucco,  in  a  style  not  equalled  in  delicacy  by 
similar  work  found  in  any  other  country,  ancient  or 
modern.  The  stucco  is  covered  with  beautiful  pic- 
tures, finished  with  a  taste  and  refinement  not 
equaled  by  the  best  modern  art.  These  ancient  paint- 
ers seem  to  have  had  four  additional  primary  colors 
to  those  known  to  us,  or  else  they  had  gTeater  skill 
in  blending  than  we.  Though  executed  thousands 
of  years  ago,  when  carefully  cleaned  they  are  to  all 
ap])earance  as  bright  as  when  new.  The  ornamen- 
tation on  the  outer  walls  is  fine;  over  and  ar(Hind 
a  door  on  the  east  there  is  trace  of  marvelouslv  del- 


526  LIFE    AND    TRAVELS 

icate  sculpturing  to  have  been  done  in  rough  limestone. 
The  north  end  was  the  front,  if  we  judge  by  the  beauty 
and  amount  of  the  decorations.  Around  and  over  the 
doorways  is  hieroglyphic  writing,  and  it  is  on  this 
side  that  there  is  a  receding  portico,  supported  by 
massive  stone  pillars  about  four  feet  square  and  eight 
high.  The  inner  surface  of  the  portico  is  elaborately 
adorned  with  figures  and  hieroglyphics,  and  so  are 
the  pillars,  excepting  on  one-  side.  There  a  skilled 
hand  has  cut  the  figures  of  two  men  with  long  beards, 
wearing  the  costume  of  the  ancient,  Syrian  Hittites. 
There  are  no  other  figures  in  North  or  South  America 
of  ancient  date,  with  long  beards  and  Hittite  dress. 
Who  were  these  bearded  men  ?  From  whence  ?  When 
and  for  what  purpose  did  they  come  to  Chichen- 
Itza?  We  know  not;  but  this  we  do  know,  that  the 
Hittite  empire  was  in  its  prime  when  Egypt  was  young 
in  years.  Here  we  had  an  item  for  memory  that 
was  revolutionary  in  spite  of  ourselves. 

Fortunately.  Dr.  Thompson  has  succeeded  in 
copying  the  most  important  part  of  the  hieroglyphics 
and  historic  paintings  for  the  (^hicago  Museum. 
Every  square  foot  of  the  structure  bears  a  record  of 
the  past,  ready  to  tell  the  story  when  the  key  to  the 
sealed  book  is  found.  A  story  which,  if  ever  known, 
may  reverse  the  favorite  theories  of  the  great  men 
of  our  day,  and  put  to  blush  the  Darwinian  craze  and 
boasted  light  of  the  nineteenth  century. 


OF    ADDISON    COFFIN.  527 

The  scene,  from  the  top  of  the  castle  is  beautiful 
and  inspiring.  It  enables  one  to  see  much  farther 
than  from  the  House  of  the  ]S^uns,  and  being  there 
early  in  the  morning  the  other  side  of  things  was  il- 
luminated, adding  greatly  to  the  sunset  view.  With 
the  glass  we  could  see  green  mounds  rising  out  of 
the  vast  forest,  marking  the  site  of  ruins  hid  away 
in  the  impenetrable  forest.  Within  a  radius  of  four 
miles  there  are  eighty-two  large  ruins,  and  within 
the  range  of  the  glass  are  a  hundred  more,  giving 
a  faint  idea  of  what  Yucatan  was  in  her  early  prime. 

West  of  the  castle,  and  occupying  the  same  rel- 
ative position  in  the  great  circle,  stands  an  immense 
ruin,  called  the  Temple,  or  Tennis  Court,  for  want 
of  a  better  name.  It  is  two  stories  high,  and  is  more 
elaborately  adorned  than  others,  and  probably  has 
the  most  important  records.  Its  numerous  chambers 
are  astonishing  to  behold.  The  hieroglyphics  seem 
to  have  an  especially  significant  meaning,  for  new 
combinations  appear,  the  lines  are  more  sharply 
drawn,  the  outline  and  details  more  perfect  in  finish, 
and  everything  shows  that  it  is  soniething  of  great 
consequence.  The  eastern  half  of  the  outer  wall  of 
several  chambers  have  fallen,  and  the  stuccoed  ceil- 
ing of  the  other  half  stands  solid  and  perfect.  In 
the  morning  sunlight  it  presents  a  picture  that  is  as- 
tonishing beyond  expression.     The  lines  of  both  the 


528  •  LIFE    AND    TRAVELS 

writing  and  sculpturing  stand  revealed  with  such  dis- 
tinctness that  we  were  spell-l)(3und  as  we  gazed  on 
the  scene.  In  the  midst  of  one  of  the  large  rooms 
thus  exposed  is  the  most  singular  object  found  in  the 
ruins.  A  block  of  stone  four  feet  square  has  been 
shaped  into  a  table,  with  top  and  bottom  the  same 
size,  the  central  portion  of  the  mass  hewn  away  to  two 
and  a  half  feet  wide  and  one  foot  thick.  Through 
the  middle  of  this  is  a  round  hole  fifteen  inches  in 
diameter,  worn  as  smooth  as  glass.  Behind  this  table 
is  a  nicely-carved,  stone  chair  or  stool,  standing:  the 
ju'oper  distance  away  so  that  one  sitting  upon  it  could 
conveniently  write  on  the  tal)le,  the  top  of  which, 
like  the  ring,  is  woni  smooth.  That  chamber  seems 
to  have  been  the  recording  room  or  judgment  hall; 
the  one  occupying  the  stool  could  thrust  his  feet 
through  the  ring  and  be  at  ease.  The  table  and  stool 
escaped  destruction  when  the  walls  fell;  they  would 
be  an  object  of  interest  in  a  museiun.  The  whole 
west  side  of  the  edifice  is  in  a  good  state  of  preserva- 
tion, and  should  be  especially  preserved  until  the 
writing  can  be  deciphered. 

Southeast  from  the  castle,  and  three  hundred 
feet  away,  a  number  of  small  churches  seem  to  have 
been  built  around  the  entire  circle,  one  thousand 
yards.  The  (diambers  were  eight  by  ten  or  twelve 
feet,  and  twelve  feet  high.      In  front  of  them  was 


OF   ADDISON   COFFIN.  o2^ 

a  row  of  stuiie  pillars,  making  a  culuiinacle  twelve 
feet  wide.  From  the  pillars  to  the  chamber  walls 
heavv  wuodeii  beams  were  laid;  then  the  chambers 
and  colonnade  were  covered  with  a  heavy  concrete 
roof,  on  wliicdi  tliousands  of  people  conld  stand  by 
day  and  sleep  by  night,  while  the  colonnade  and  cham- 
bers furnished  shelter  in  time  of  rain  for  other  thous- 
ands. 

The  circle  was  interrupted  for  a  fifth  of  the  dis- 
tance on  the  west  side,  and  a  straight  wall  was  built. 
Kunning  out  from  the  north  end  of  the  temple,  a 
parallel  wall  leaves  a  level,  enclosed  space  suited 
for  national  games  of  ceremony,  hence  the  term  Ten- 
nis Court  now  given  it.  The  w^alls  are  thirty  feet 
high,  and  the  inner  one  thirty  feet  thick  and  nearly 
perfect.  East  of  the  castle  many  chambers  and  pil- 
lars are  still  standing  amid  the  thick  tangle  of  vines 
and  bushes,  but  are  very  easily  seen  and  studied  from 
the  top  of  the  castle.  The  wdiole  area  of  the  circle 
is  level,  and  may  have  been  used  to  celebrate  relig- 
ious festivals  or  public  games — possibly  both.  By 
digging  into  the  surface  the  same  solid  concrete  is 
found  everywhere.  By  a  careful  estimate,  this  mass 
of  concrete  is  nowhere  less  than  twenty  feet  thick, 
and  where  there  are  depressions  it  is  forty  feet.  Cas- 
tle pyramid  is  not  nearly  sf)  high  as  the  great  pyramid 
of  Egypt,  but  its  }>eculiar  construction  makes  it  look 


530  LIFE    AND    TRAVELS 

much  higher.  Had  it  tenninated  in  a  pinnacle  like 
those  in  Egj^t,  it  would  have  been  taller  than  any 
in  the  world. 

When  we  think  of  the  work  it  took  to  make  the 
foundation  terrace,  then  to  build  the  castle,  pyramid, 
the  temple  and  circle  of  chambers,  we  begin  to  under- 
stand what  an  immense  amount  of  work  it  cost.  Then, 
too,  we  must  remember  that  the  ancient  Maya  had 
no  beasts  of  burden,  that  all  was  done  by  human  hands 
and  mechanical  contrivance  unknown  to  us.  Tak- 
ing these  things  into  consideration,  we  realize  that 
more  labor  and  ingenuity  of  man  has  been  bestowed 
upon  these  ruins  than  any  other  in  the  world. 

It  was  in  the  vicinity  of  this  circle  that  Le  Plon- 
goon  tested  his  assertion  that  he  had  the  key  to  the 
Maya  language,  and  could  read  the  hieroglyphics. 
He  claimed  that  he  had  found  a  secret  passage,  and 
upon  deciphering  the  writing  therein  he  was  informed 
that  the  image  of  Chack  Mool,  one  of  the  three  broth- 
ers who  founded  the  Maya  empire,  was  buried  at  a 
certain  point  and  a  certain  depth  underground.  He  ex- 
cavated at  the  exact  spot  and  found  the  statue,  or  re- 
clining figure,  but  while  removing  it  to  the  railroad  for 
transportation  to  Chicago,  the  Mexican  government 
took  possession  and  put  it  in  the  museum  in  Mexico 
City.  It  is  a  wonder,  next  in  importance  to  the  calen- 
dar stone.   Le  Plongeon  now  conducts  his  explorations 


OF    ADDISON    COFFIN.  531 

in  secret;  he  may  know  soiuetliiiig  of  the  conical 
stones  and  the  secret  of  the  contents  of  the  mortar, 
but  if  so,  he  wisely  keeps  still.  Rumor  has  it  that 
he  read  another  record  at  Uxmal,  and  by  it  he  found 
the  image  of  a  brother  of  O'hack  Mool,  but  that  after 
taking  twelve  photographs  of  it  he  re-buried  it  be- 
fore the  government  officers  arrived.  He  showed  the 
photographs,  but  refused  to  disclose  the  spot  where 
it  was  concealed.  It  is  quite  probable  that  many 
secret  excavations  may  be  made,  for  it  will  be  im- 
possible for  the  government  to  guard  all  points.  On 
general  principles  it  is  all  right  to  prohibit  relics  from 
being  removed  from  the  country,  though  just  now 
it  seems  rather  like  acting  ''the  dog  in  the  manger.'^ 
We  hope  the  time  will  come  when  the  Mexican  gov- 
ernment will  be  able  to  collect  into  its  national  mu- 
seum many  remains  of  the  prehistoric  age,  for  the 
material  is  in  their  country  in  great  abundance. 

Our  second  day's  exploration  terminated  as  the 
first;  we  were  tired,  hot  and  dust  begrimed,  covered 
with  ticks,  hungry  and  thirsty,  hands  torn  with  thorns 
and  briars,  and  last,  though  not  least,  smarting  from 
the  bites  of  ants.  Rest  and  a  good  supper,  and  a 
cleansing  from  dust  and  insects  restored  us  to  cheer- 
fulness again,  and  before  we  retired  for  the  night 
the  doctor  gave  us  another  chapter  of  his  life  among 
the  ruins  and  natives,  the  life  work  before  him,  his 


532  LIFE    AND    TRAVELS 

aspirations  to  make  his  place  the  model  in  Yucatan, 
Mexico  and  all  Central  America. 

He  has  built  his  splendid  mansion  so  as  to  com- 
mand a  view  of  all  the  ruins  of  Chichen-Itza.  From 
the  roof  a  good  eye  with  a  good  glass  can  see  the 
inscriptions  and  beautiful  facades  on  three  of  the  most 
interesting  ruins  of  the  group.  It  is  his  intention 
to  have,  a  little  further  on,  a  village  of  several  hun- 
dred families,  with  a  school  maintained  and  controlled 
by  himself. 

At  a  late  hour  my  niece  again  adjourned 
the  meeting  and  we  lay  down,  the  othei's  to  sleep, 
but  my  mind  was  too  full  for  that.  As  the  saying 
goes  ''Reading  between  the  lines"  t(j  get  a  double 
meaning  out  of  a  written  article,  so  I  was  reading 
between  the  stones  nearly  all  night  of  things  not  seen, 
things  that  came  out  in  startling  distinctness,  so  at 
A^ariance  with  my  former  opinions  and  the  accepted 
ideas  of  the  world,  that  I  had  to  write  a  reserAT^d  chap- 
ter in  my  memory  to  aAvait  the  results  that  Avill  follow 
the  researches  of  Dr.  Thompson  and  Le  Plongeon. 

We  had  seen  \A'ith  our  eyes,  handled  Avith  our 
hands,  stood  on  Avith  our  feet  this  wonderful  group 
of  ruins,  and  Avitli  the  aid  of  the  doctor's  perfect 
knowledge  of  all  their  details,  Ave  had  an  intelligent 
idea  of  their  real  A^astness,  so  Ave  determined  to  re- 
turn to  Merida  and  rest  for  a  few  days,  then  start 


OF   ADDISON   COFFIN.  533 

out  again.  On  the  morning  of  February  8th  we  were 
astir  early,  intending  to  make  a  forced  march  to  the 
end  of  the  cart  line,  then  make  the  ride  during  the 
night  and  take  the  cars  the  next  morning  at  6  a. 
m.  We  had  an  early  breakfast,  mounted  our  horses, 
bade  the  natives  good-bye,  and  were  soon  passing 
under  the  shadow  of  the  great  pyramid,  and  we  cast 
many  thankful  looks  behind  us  as  we  went  on  into 
the  forest.  We  observed  the  same  line  of  march 
in  returning  as  in  going  out.  In  this  trip  we  saw 
things  from  the  other  side,  as  well  as  many  that  were 
new.  In  some  places  the  opposite  side  of  the  stones 
were  carved,  showing  additional  signs  of  former  life. 
At  one  place  there  was  a  little  black  tube  like  a 
small  hose  pipe  attached  to  the  sides  of  the  trees  from 
the  ground  to  the  thick  foliage  at  the  top,  constructed 
by  a  large,  but  tender,  variety  of  ant  as  a  protec- 
tion from  enemies  and  sunlight,  for  if  they  are  ex- 
posed to  the  hot  sun  for  a  short  time  they  curl  up 
and  die.  We  next  came  to  a  little  smooth  path  which 
crossed  the  road.  It  was  about  two  inches  mde,  and 
along  it  a  multitude  of  ants  were  traveling  both  ways 
from  an  ant  hill  to  a  large  tree.  Those  coming  from 
the  tree  carried  a  piece  of  leaf  from  the  size  of  a 
dime  to  a  half  dollar,  with  which  they  fed  their  young. 
They  are  called  umbrella  ants,  and  are  first-class 
fighters  when  their  nest*  are  disturbed;  they  are 
34 


534  LIFE    AND    TRAVELS 

equally  as  willing  to  attack  a  man  as  a  mouse.  There 
was  a  deep-water  hole  near  the  path,  overhung  with 
dark  trees.  Julia  Ballinger  wished  to  look  into  it, 
so  dismounting  she  made  her  way  to  the  brink,  then 
sprang  back  with  a  sujDpressed  scream,  but  quickly 
called  out:  "Oh I  I  thought  it  was  a  snake."  When 
she  returned  she  had  in  her  hand  what  seemed  to  be 
a  real  snake;  it  was  about  fifteen  inches  long,  and 
of  brown  color.  It  was  a  section  of  a  vine  that  climbs 
the  body  of  trees  and  is  in  snake-like  parts,  an  almost 
perfect  imitation,  and  they  were  growing  on  the  trees 
around  the  pool.  The  ride  was  very  pleasant  in  the 
early  morning,  but  as  the  sun  rose  higher  the  heat 
became  oppressive  and  I  had  to  slacken  pace.  So 
Dr.  Thompson  and  footman  pushed  on  to  have  din- 
ner ready,  and  Julia  Ballinger  and  I  moved  more 
slowly,  resting  in  the  shade  occasionally,  and  about 
noon  we  made  the  village  all  right,  but  as  usual,  tired, 
hot  and  hungi'v.  A  bowl  of  first-class  chicken  soup 
revived  ns,  and  we  rejoiced  in  making  the  cart  line 
in  safety. 

After  a  few  hom-s  we  monnted  the  cart  and 
started  on  the  long,  rough  ride,  in  the  same  cart  and 
with  the  same  headlong  driver.  We  started  at  a 
lively  trot,  to  coA'er  as  much  ground  as  possible  be- 
fore night.  On  we  pounded  for  an  hour  or  so,  when 
a  rival  cart  came  up  and  attempted  to  pass  us  in  the 


OF    ADDISON    COFFIN.  585 

dust.  In  an  instant  our  driver's  eyes  flashed  and 
lie  seemed  on  Hre.  With  a  long,  shrill  ''halloo,"  he 
flourished  his  long  whip,  lashed  his  mules  into  a  dead 
run,  and  for  a  time  the  race  was  wild  and  furious. 
The  two  carts  were  abreast  in  a  road  twenty-live  feet 
wide  and  very  rocky.  1  expected  to  see  the  carts 
wrecked  at  once,  for  they  bounced  and  bounded  like 
foot  balls,  with  a  deafening  clatter.  I  was  sitting 
by  the  driver  and  saw  the  whole  thing.  The  rival 
cart  frequently  bounded  a  foot  high  when  striking 
bowlders,  and  I  had  to  be  diligent  to  business  to  keep 
my  seat.  This  continued  for  several  miles,  when  our 
driver  headed  oft'  his  rival  and  took  the  center  of 
the  road,  but  still  on  the  run. 

At  last  the  other  cart  turned  down  a  fork  road 
with  a  shrill  shout  of  detiance  and  disappeared,  the 
mules  still  running.  We  soon  toned  down  to  a  reg- 
ular trot  again,  and  none  too  soon  for  me,  for  it  was 
taxing  my  powers  of  endurance  rather  severely.  It 
was  the  wildest  ride  I  ever  made  on  wheels  and  I  do 
not  want  a  second  experience,  yet  I  must  confess  that 
when  I  saw^  the  carts  were  indestructible  and  the  mules 
seemed  made  of  steel,  I  entered  into  the  spirit  of  the 
race  and  wanted  our  driver  to  win,  almost  forget- 
ting my  bumps  and  bruises.  After  the  race  we 
jogged  monotonously  on,  made  the  relay,  took  lunch, 
rested   and  reached   Izama!  on  time.     With  the  ex- 


536  LIFE    AND    TRAVELS 

citement  of  the  race  and  night  coming  on,  there  was 
little  opportunity  to  take  notes  on  the  way.  We 
stayed  with  the  same  lady  at  Izamal  that  we  did  go- 
ing down.  She  welcomed  us  back  and  seemed  pleased 
to  have  an  American  lady  in  her  house  who  could 
speak  her  own  language,  and  she  kindly  prepared 
an  early  lunch  for  us  to  meet  the  train.  The  run 
from  Izamal  was  made  in  about  three  hours,  but  we 
were  too  full  of  what  we  had  heard,  felt  and  seen  to 
give  much  attention  to  things  by  the  way,  excepting 
to  see  ruins,  though  all  bear  the  same  general  outline. 
When  we  arrived  at  our  former  quarters  we  re- 
sumed housekeeping  and  resting  for  a  few  ilays. 
Xotwithstanding  we  had  a  rough  trij)  we  f(nind  our- 
selves none  the  worse  for  it  physically,  l)ut  we  began 
to  look  at  Yucatan  in  a  new  light,  for  it  had  to  us 
become  to  the  western  continent  what  Egypt  and 
Greece  are  to  the  old  world.  Yea,  far  more,  for  there 
had  opened  up  to  our  astonished  minds  a  prehistoric 
past  that  was  revolutionizing  all  former  ideas  and  shak- 
ing our  faith  in  much  of  modern  philosophy.  We 
were  also  beginning  to  compare  the  character  of  the 
Spaniard  as  a  murderer  and  destroyer  in  the  new 
world,  with  the  Mohammedan  of  the  old,  and  were 
ready  to  decide  that  if  it  were  possible  for  either  to 
excel  the  other  in  wickedness,  the  Spaniard  was  ahead, 
and  would  receive  the  greater  condemnation  in  the 
final  day  of  retribution. 


OF    ADDISON    COFFIN.  537 

While  resting  in  Merida  we  enjoyed  the  cool 
evening  sitting  nnder  the  green  trees  in  the  plaza, 
watching  the  ever-changing  scene  that  passed  before 
us,  and  in  looking  into  the  faces  of  strange  people,  to 
whom  a  double  interest  was  attached.  Sometimes  we 
sat  near  a  group  engaged  in  animated  conversation, 
and  my  niece  would  interpret  to  me.  At  other 
times  she  told  me  the  comments  that  were  made  about 
us.  Although  they  were  not  always  complimentary, 
yet  it  enabled  us  to  see  ourselves  as  they  saw  us.  In 
the  market  we  heard  the  gossip  and  news  from  neigh- 
boring tow^ns  and  villages.  All  the  time  the  people 
never  dreamed  that  their  conversation  was  being 
turned  into  Anglo-Saxon  as  fast  as  they  spoke.  In 
this  way  we  gained  an  insight  into  home  life  and  the 
home  thoughts  of  that  quiet,  simple,  civil  people,  nor 
did  we  ever  grow  weary  of  studying  that  Avonder- 
ful  race,  whose  antiquity  we  had  discovered  went 
so  far  back  into  the  unknown  past,  and  who  have 
remained  unchanged  through  so  many  thousands  of 
years,  for  in  their  oldest  paintings  on  the  ruins  the 
form  and  feature  is  a  perfect  photograph  of  the  liv- 
ing race  of  to-day.  The  sandaled  foot,  prehensile  toe, 
the  bare-headed  women,  their  single,  flowing  gar- 
ments, the  plumes  of  feathers  worn  as  ornaments  for 
the  head  on  state  occasions,  are  all  painted  on  the 
stuccoed  wall,  a  perfect  type  of  the  living  reality. 
All,  all  was  wonderful. 


538  LIFE    AND    TRAVELS 

There  were  two  national  festivals  approaching, 
and  active  preparations  for  the  occasions  were  being 
prosecuted.  We  were  much  interested  in  the  musical 
department,  though  thev  have  music  bv  the  mili- 
tary band  everv  evening.  Private  bands  were  prac- 
ticing for  the  coming  events,  and  in  this  connection 
came  in  one  of  the  strange  incidents  of  my  life.  I 
had  heard  the  brass  bands  in  Cairo,  Egypt,  try  to 
recall  the  lost  melodies  of  Memnon's  harp,  the  glad, 
triumphal  songs  of  the  Christian  pilgi'ims  returning 
from  Jerusalem,  and  of  the  devout  Mohammedans 
coming  from  their  sacred  shrines.  I  had  also  heard 
the  sweet  notes  of  the  Dorian  flute  on  the  Grecian 
hills,  the  wild,  barbaric  notes  of  the  Turcoman  and 
Cossack  of  the  Caspian,  the  national  airs  of  all  the 
nations  of  Europe  and  from  early  childhood  our  own 
grand  tunes,  but  when  I  heard  the  soft,  sweet,  low 
melodies  of  the  Maya  there  was  a  new  revelation, 
my  spirit  caught  the  echo  of  a  lost  sweetness  that  once 
filled  the  soul  of  the  vanished  civilization.  It  came 
to  my  ear  like  the  sad  wail  of  a  conquered  race,  and 
called  to  mind  the  lament  of  the  captives  by  the 
rivers  of  Babylon  when  they  thought  of  the  lost  and 
fallen  glory  and  beauty  of  Jerusalem. 

In  listening  to  the  mournful  undertones  in  their 
music  and  songs,  and  in  looking  into  the  faces  of 
those  around  me,  I  felt  oppressed  with  inexpressible 


OF    ADDISON    COFFIN.  539 

sadness.  In  their  fallen,  ruined  conditio^  there  was 
much  that  was  l)right  and  beautiful.  The  question 
came  up  again  and  again:  What  were  they  in  their 
glorious  prime,  when  tower  and  temple  were  new 
and  the  glad  songs  of  happy  thousands  were  heard 
on  the  soft  evening  air^  It  is  truly  a  sad  thing  to 
see  the  crumbling  ruins  of  a  once  mighty  people, 
and  a  conquered,  broken  remnant  still  lingering 
among  them.  It  was  with  a  feeling  of  relief  that 
we  turned  away  from  this  line  of  thought  aud  be- 
gan preparing  for  a  second  trip  off  into  the  interior, 
where  the  doctor  assured  us  we  would  still  find  rough 
traveling  and  possibly  new  experiences,  but  gave  it 
as  his  opinion  that  we  were  equal  to  the  trip  and  could 
endure  its  privations. 

In  making  preparations  for  our  trip  to  Uxmal 
ruins,  the  most  essential  thing  was  a  well-lilled  lunch 
basket,  supplies  being  scarce  at  that  point,  as  it  was 
near  the  frontier,  where  there  were  many  soldiers  and 
much  excitement.  The  distance  was  seventy  miles 
by  rail  and  twenty-two  by  cart,  nearly  south  from 
Merida.  We  took  the  train  at  2  p.  m.  and  ran  down 
to  Ticul  by  5  p.  m.,  through  a  much  better  cultivated 
country  than  toward  Chichen-Itza.  There  were  many 
large  fields  of  wheat,  rye  and  barley,  with  less  ground 
given  to  com  and  sisal.  In  addition  to  the  rural 
beauty  along  the  way,   we  were  surprised  to  see  so 


540  LIFE    AND    TRAVELS 

many  ruins  towering  up  out  of  the  forests  and  in  the 
open  lands,  in  groups  of  five,  ten  and  fourteen,  and 
in  every  group  there  was  a  large  pyramid  with  its 
square-chambered  edifice  on  top.  They  were  from 
one  to  three  hundred  feet  high,  many  still  well  pre- 
served but  some  very  much  broken.  A  majority  of 
the  pyramids  in  Yucatan,  in  the  small  groups,  are 
from  seventy-five  to  one  hundred  and  fifty  feet  high. 
Occasionally  one  is  three  hundred  feet  in  height, 
but  this  is  where  there  has  been  a  great  center  of 
population.  Everywhere  they  show  the  same  general 
outline  of  architectural  design.  We  were  scarcely 
ever  out  of  sight  of  the  ruins,  showing  that  the  coun- 
try had  once  been  densely  populated,  an  almost  con- 
tinuous city,  for  there  were  places  that  half  the  sur- 
face of  the  country  was  covered  with  wreckage  of 
buildings.  Xearly  all  the  stone  fences  are  constructed 
from  the  ruins;  they  are  made  up  of  carved  pillars 
and  pieces  of  cornice.  There  is  evidence  of  ancient 
highways  crossing  the  country.  Like  the  old  caravan 
routes  in  Palestine  and  Syria,  the  solid  rock  is  worn 
smooth  b'^  the  bare  and  sandaled  feet  of  the  multi- 
tudes that  have  passed  over  it.  In  more  than  one 
place  entire  villages  have  been  built  of  the  ruins  of 
a  pyramid  on  its  teiTaced  foundation,  where  the  an- 
cient wells  have  been  found  and  cleaned  out.  As 
successive    ruins  and   evidence  of  former  life    were 


OF    ADDISON    COFFIN.  541 

passed,  the  thought  of  the  riurriLer  of  human  beings 
who  had  lived  in  that  country  became  oppressive,  for 
with  each  individual  had  been  labor,  care,  anxiety, 
pain  and  death.  And  the  question  came:  Why  had 
they  Hved,  toiled  and  died^  Had  it  all  been  in  vain? 
Is  the  world  better  for  it^ 

When  we  reached  Ticul  another  surprise  awaited 
us.  Instead  of  being  an  unknown  railroad  station 
it  was  in  the  midst  of  the  ruins  of  a  once  vast  city. 
Far  off  to  the  north  and  west  many  square  miles  are 
covered  with  ruined  heaps,  so  much  so  that  a  great 
deal  of  the  ground  cannot  be  cultivated.  We  spent 
the  night  with  a  wealthy  man  who  owned,  and  w^as 
reading,  a  Protestant  Bible,  and  he  and  his  family 
Avere  very  glad  to  have  us  there  on  .account  of  my 
niece  being  able  to  speak  their  language.  The  old 
gentleman  took  a  long  lesson  in  a  better  pronuncia- 
tion of  Spanish,  wdiile  he  helped  her  in  the  Maya 
tongue.  After  that  the  wife  and  daughters,  with 
some  oi  the  neighbors,  eagerly  gathered  around  Julia 
Ballinger,  asking  an  endless  variety  of  questions  about 
her  teaching,  the  States,  and  why  we  were  going  to 
Uxmal,  etc.  She  was  the  first  American  lady  they 
had  seen  who  could  talk  wath  them  about  home  life. 

Early  next  morning  we  secured  the  one  idle  cart 
in  town  and  began  our  twenty-two  mile  drive.  We 
found  the  road  much  better  than  anv  we  had  seen 


542  LIFE    AND    TRAVELS 

ill  the  country,  and  what  was  still  more  pleasing  we 
had  a  sensible,  practical  driver,  with  a  cool  wind  in 
our  faces,  so  we  made  a  quick  trip,  passing  over  a 
range  of  foothills  thrown  out  from  the  mountains 
to  the  west.  At  10  a.  m.  we  reached  the  village, 
one  and  one-half  miles  from  Uxmal,  took  a  lunch, 
watered  the  mules  and  then  drove  on.  The  first  sight 
we  had  was  of  the  great  pyramid,  with  its  square 
edifice  on  top  giving  it  a  peculiarly  airy  look.  It  is 
not  three  hundred  feet  high,  but  its  fonn  makes  it 
look  much  higher.  A  fiight  of  stone  steps  on  the  east 
side  leads  to  the  top.  These  we  ascended  and  looked 
down  upon  one  of  the  grandest  scenes  in  the  world. 
Within  the  radius  of  a  mile  are  fourteen  vast  build- 
ings, som-e  of  them  nearly  perfect,  others  badly  broken 
and  crumbling.  They  stand  on  the  edge  of  a  green 
forest,  lone,  silent  and  desolate,  so  vast  in  extent  and 
representing  such  an  incalculable  amount  of  human 
labor  that  it  impresses  the  mind  in  a  way  words  can- 
not express.  Beyond  those  near  at  hand  the  glass 
brought  to  view  about  one  hundre<l  more,  which  were 
shut  off  from  examination  by  the  impenetrable 
jungles.  We  stood  long  in  wonder,  gazing  on  the 
bewildering  and  sublime  view,  for  the  longer  we  stood 
the  more  impressive  became  the  feeling  of  utter  desola- 
tion that  hung  over  the  ruins.  Somehow  this  scene 
of  wreck  came  to  us  in  a  way  that,  with  our  feelings 


OF    ADDISON    COFFIN.  543 

of  sadness,  there  was  also  one  of  joy  and  thankful- 
ness that  we  had  lived  to  stand  on  that  spot  and  we 
involuntarily  ran  over  a  list  of  our  friends  whom  we 
would  have  been  glad  to  have  had  with  us,  that  we 
might  have  looked  into  their  faces  and  read  their 
thoughts. 

The  pyramid  had  a  smaller  edifice  on  top  than 
usual,  and  its  chambei*s  and  walls  were  rapidly  fall- 
ing into  a  shapeless  heap.  On  the  western  face,  twenty 
feet  below  the  top,  are  two  chambers  running  back 
into  the  body  of  the  pyramid,  which  seem  to  have 
been  held  in  high  estimation.  They  are  more  elabo- 
rately sculptured  than  others  and  the  approach  is 
well  guarded.  The  steps  and  doorway  are  but  little 
worn  by  use,  showing  them  to  have  been  objects  of 
special  care.  From  their  doors  we  looked  down  into 
the  great  quadrangle,  some  two  hundred  feet  from 
the  base  of  the  pyramid.  These  rooms  are  nearly 
perfect;  the  carving,  painting  and  writing,  to  a  good 
eye,  is  still  distinct.  We  next  went  to  the  college, 
entered  the  open  court  one  hundred  feet  wide  and 
three  hundred  long,  surrounded  by  massive  buildings 
one  story  high,  excepting  the  north  side,  where  there 
are  two  stories.  The  second  one  is  back  from  the 
front  so  as  to  give  a  broad  promenade.  There  are 
numerous  rooms  on  all  the  sides  of  the  court  opening 
inward.      The  court  is  entered  bv  one  main  door  in 


544  LIFE    AND    TRAVELS 

the  middle  of  the  south  front.  There  are  two  other 
smaller  doors,  one  in  each  end  near  the  northeast  and 
northwest  corners.  The  principal  door  is  really  two, 
with  one  entrance,  and  has  been  closed  by  massive 
shutters  which  swung  in  stone  sockets.  Every  square 
foot  of  the  walls  facing  the  inner  courts  of  all  the 
buildings  is  beautifully  ornamented.  Some  of  the 
designs  on  the  facades  are  not  surpassed  anywhere 
or  by  any  people,  which  is  all  the  more  astonishing, 
as  the  w^ork  is  done  in  the  rough  limestone  of  the 
countay.  The  tracing  of  vines,  wreaths  of  flowers, 
fruit  and  figures  of  men  and  women,  birds  and  ser- 
pents, are  so  life-like  in  design  and  so  perfect  in  finish 
that  our  astonishment  was  ever  on  the  increase. 
Across  the  west  facade  are  two  plumed  serpents  carved 
in  stone,  but  so  true  to  nature  that,  seen  from  a  disr 
tance,  they  seem  to  be  living  types.  They  are  twined 
together  in  such  a  natural  position  that  no  painter 
has  since  equalled  them,  and  they  were  carved  thous- 
ands of  years  ago  and  are  yet  nearly  perfect  in  all  their 
parts. 

The  college  is  surrounded  by  massive  walls  which 
extend  out  to  smaller  buildings,  and  to  raised  terraces 
on  which  may  have  been  tents,  arbors,  awnings,  or 
wooden  buildings  that  were  perishable.  The  con- 
necting walls  are  fifteen  to  twenty  feet  thick,  and  on 
a  level  with  the  floor  of  the  inner  court.     The  two 


OF    ADDISON    COFFIN.  545 

most  interesting  walls  connect  the  g-overnor's  house 
with  the  college,  which  stands  about  tifteen  rods  south. 
The  two  walls  have  been  twentv-live  feet  high,  and 
had  many  chambers  in  them  opening  into  the  avenue. 
These  walls  are  badly  broken,  but  must  have  formed 
a  beautiful  passage-way  in  their  perfection,  and  one 
can  easily  imagine  students  oi'cupying  the  room  while 
attending  college. 

The  governor's  house  (for  lack  of  a  better  name) 
is  one  of  the  distinctive  figures  among  the  ruins  in 
America,  both  in  its  structure  and  the  immense  la- 
bor it  has  taken  to  build  it.  First,  there  is  a  solid  mass 
of  concrete  400x500  feet  and  sixty  feet  high,  then 
in  the  center  of  this  is  another  mass  of  concrete 
200x350  feet,  raised  six  feet  high,  the  longest  way 
being  north  and  south.  On  top  of  the  central  terrace 
is  the  governor's  house,  300x(30  feet  and  fifty  feet 
high,  with  walls  six  to  eight  feet  through,  with  a 
flat  roof  eight  feet  thick  above  the  points  of  the  high- 
est arches.  Through  the  center  of  the  building,  run- 
ning lengthwise,  is  a  solid  wall  eight  feet  thick  at  the 
base,  but  increasing  in  thickness  as  it  goes  upward 
until  it  fills  all  the  space  between  the  chamber,  which 
is  lengthwise  like  all  the  others;  thus  there  is  a  ('en- 
tral  mass  of  immense  density.  We  must  remember 
that  this  building  is  concrete,  cased  on  the  outside 
v/ith  hewn  stone  and  stuccoed  inside,  and  we  get  some 


546  LIFE    AND    TRAVELS 

idea  of  its  solidity.  Througli  the  center,  east  to  west, 
is  a  hallway  with  a  pointed  arch,  though  not  so  high 
as  the  chambers.  The  two  doors  to  this  hall  have 
been  profusely  ornamented,  especially  the  one  fac- 
ing the  east,  which  must  have  been  dazzling  in  its 
splendor  before  the  brutal  Spaniard  destroyed  it. 
Beautiful  fragments  still  lay  in  heaps  before  the  door- 
way. The  west  door,  in  like  manner,  was  blown  to 
pieces  by  gunpowder,  and  the  very  stones  seem  to 
appeal  to  heaven  for  retribution  on  the  destroyer. 
The  north  end,  facing  the  college,  is  finely  decorated, 
and  the  high  doorway  to  a  square  is  quite  imposing; 
the  chamber  seems  to  have  been  a  public  place,  as 
the  doorways  and  walls  are  much  worn.  The  main 
body  of  the  building  is  laid  off  in  chambers  forty  to 
sixty  feet  long,  twelve  to  tw^enty  wide,  and  thirty  feet 
high,  terminating  in  pointed  arches.  There  is  but 
one  door  to  each  room,  six  by  eight  feet,  with  no 
other  opening  for  either  light  or  air;  this  is  the  case 
with  the  rooms  in  all  the  ruins.  There  is  a  singular 
arrangement  of  stone  rings  and  hooks  around  the 
walls,  with  cavities  where  strong,  wooden  beams  have 
extended  across  that  would  have  been  capable  of  sus- 
taining much  weight. 

Some  of  the  most  perfect  and  marvelous  paint- 
ings are  found  in  these  long,  dark,  high  chambers. 
This  house  confirmed   my  opinion  that   the  ancient 


OF    ADDISON    COFFIN.  547 

i\la,\a    understood    electricity,   and    lighted   up    these 
otherwise  dark  cdianibers  with  it,   as  the  appliances 
for  using  it  are  there  to  speak  for  themselves.      When 
Dr.  Thompson  and  Le  Plongeon  copied  the  paintings 
they  could  not  get  light  strong  enough  from  oil  or 
gas,  so  they  had  to  arrange  a  system  of  reflectors  to 
throw    the    sunlight    into    the    dark    corners,    which 
brought  out  the  marvelous  coloring,  and  drew  aside 
the  veil  for  a  moment  which  covered  the  past  in  ob- 
scurity.    A  few   hundred  feet   southwest   from   the 
governor's  house,  and  connected  with  the  lower  ter- 
race by   a  maseive   wall,   stands   a  flat-topped   pyra- 
aiiid,  fifty  feet  higher  than  the  house.     In  one  side 
of  the  connecting  wall  there  are  chambers,  some  much 
broken,  others  perfect,  but  covered  with  bushes  and 
rubbish.      The  wall  and  pyramid  is  overgrown  with 
trees  and  vines,  though  an  ascent  can  be  made  by 
broken  steps  on  the  east  and  west  side.     Beyond  this 
pyramid,   and  connected  by  parallel  walls,   formin^r 
an  avenue,  are  two  other  large  edifices  in  a  fair  state 
of  preservation,  and  elaborately  oraamented  with  new 
and  ever-changing  designs. 

Xorth  and  west  from  the  college  extends  another 
line  of  ruins,  massive  and  grand,  varied  enough  in 
form  to  keep  up  a  pleasing  variety  in  the  whole  group, 
while  all  seem  as  if  designed  by  one  mind,  there  is 
no  monot.)ny.     From  the  top  of  either  pyramid  the 


548  LIFE    AND    TRAVELS 

view  is  grand,  and  cannot  be  described  for  lack  of 
words  and  standards  of  comparison,  for  everything 
is  wholly  different  from  ruins  of  any  other  part  of 
the  world,  or  any  other  age.  The  effect  on  the  mind 
and  eye  of  the  giant  ruins  rising  up  out  of  the  for- 
est in  lone,  silent  and  desolate  gTandeur  delles  descrip- 
tion; it  cannot  l)e  put  into  words.  Go  where  you 
would  to  take  a  view,  it  was  always  the  same — im- 
mense, overwhelming  and  vast  in  extent.  From 
every  side,  from  every  object  came  to  us  a  conscious 
reminder  that  we  were  gazing  on  the  ruins  of  a  civi- 
lization once  possessed  of  wisdom  and  refinement 
more  glorious  than  our  <:)wn,  that  with  these  ruins 
there  perished  a  knowledge  that  may  never  come  back 
to  men:  the  highest  attainments  of  the  nineteenth 
century  are  but  the  alphabet  of  the  ancient  Maya. 

It  was  with  feelings  of  regret  that  we  had  to 
pass  by  so  many  beautiful  objects  that  would  \ye  highly 
valued  by  college  and  private  museums,  but  the  gov- 
ernment has  forbidden  their  removal  and  there  is 
little  chance  to  have  them  handled  carefully.  The 
natives  value  them  no  more  than  other  stones,  so  we 
left  them  where  they  had  falkn,  possibly  to  look  up 
into  the  faces  of  tourists  for  generations  to  come. 
While  we  were  wandering  about  and  climbing  over 
the  wonderful  things  that  strewed  the  ground  on  every 
.side,  we  were  aroused  by  the  rumble  of  distant  thun- 


OP    ADDISON    COFFIN.  549 

der  coming  from  the  west,  and  soon  dark  clouds  .came 
drifting  over  the  hills  and  we  had  to  hurry  to  the 
house  in  the  village.  We  had  arranged  to  make  a 
night  trip  back  to  Ticul,  but  the  storm,  coming  on 
v^'ith  heavy  rain,  compelled  us  to  stay  with  the  na- 
tiA^es.  AVe  were  near  the  hostile  borders  where  there 
was  much  excitement  and  many  soldiers  in  camp. 
The  situation  was  dangerous  and  we  had  been  ad- 
vised not  to  stop  over  night  in  that  vicinity.  As 
darkness  fell  wild-looking  natives  came  in  and  watched 
all  our  movements  with  eager  curiosity,  and  finally 
I  became  uneasy  about  our  lunch  basket,  and  possi- 
bly our  money,  for  there  was  evident  excitement 
among  them.  My  niece  smiled  at  my  fears,  say- 
ing if  they  did  take  our  lunch  we  were  only  twenty- 
two  miles  from  supplies,  then  added:  ''Uncle,  just 
sit  down  and  be  easy;  after  supper  I  will  teach  thee  a 
lesson  of  William  Penn  Quakerism,  and  show  what 
can  be  done  with  these  fierce-looking  natives."  "O, 
ye  of  Httle  faith." 

By  this  time  it  was  nearly  dark  and  a  circle  C)f 
faces  was  seen  gazing  in  through  the  door.  Julia 
Ballinger  stepped  outside  right  into  their  midst,  and 
began  talking  to  them  in  their  native  tongue.  She 
asked  them  about  their  work,  the  corn  planting  and 
the  common  things  of  life,  and  told  them  how  the 
same  things  were  done   in   the  States.      They   were 

36 


550  LIFE    AND    TRAVELS 

at  first  dumb  with  astonishment,  for  they  had  never 
before  heard  a  white  lady  speak  their  language,  or 
one  who  would  notice  them  at  all.  After  their  sur- 
prise was  over  they  were  eager  to  ask  questions.  Who 
ai'e  you,  and  wdiy  are  you  here  alone?  Why  do 
you  travel  without  a  guard  i  Your  driver  tells  us  you 
go  unarmed,  is  it  so?  How  do  vou  manage  to  travel 
that  way  (  This  is  a  sample  of  the  character  of  their 
questions. 

Julia  told  them  we  trusted  in  the  Lord  to 
take  care  of  us:  that  He  had  })romised  to  pro- 
tect all  who  put  their  trust  in  Him;  that  I  had  trav- 
eled many  years  and  in  many  lands,  always  unarmed; 
that  the  Lord  had  taken  care  of  me,  and  would  con- 
tinue to  do  so.  This  was  a  revelation  to  them;  they 
had  never  heard  such  teaching  before,  never  seen 
a  man  who  was  not  armed  when  away  from  home. 
They  shook  their  heads  in  bewildeniient  and  coidd 
not  comprehend  it,  but  the  wild  look  left  their  faces 
and  was  replaced  by  one  of  kindly  astonishment. 
Without  l)eing  conscious  of  how  time  passed,  she 
talked  for  nearly  an  hour  and  then  bade  them  a  kind 
good-night,  and  the  impressive  lesson  was  ended,  one 
that  I  shall  always  remember  and  these  natives 
will  never  forget.  We  slept  in  lianmiocks  that  night 
with  no  thought  of  fear. 

Xext  morning  when  the  cart  came  around  for 


OF    ADDISON    COFFIN.  551 

starting  the  native  men  were  standing  in  line,  ready 
to  bid  us  good-bye  and  to  look  with  wide-open,  kindly 
eyes  into  the  face  of  the  ^Svonderful"  lady.  They 
called  after  us  as  a  parting  blessing,  ''May  your  lives 
be  happy,"  and  we  were  soon  out  of  sight  on  our  re- 
turn trip. 

The  storm  was  the  first  of  the  approaching  rainy 
season.  It  cleansed  things  from  the  accumulated 
dust  of  several  months,  cooled  the  air,  revived  vege- 
tation and  loosened  the  tongue  of  the  sone"  birds  among 
the  trees.  We  felt  so  refreshed  by  the  change  of 
aiT  that  we  walked  up  the  rocky  side  of  the  foot- 
hills, and  enjoyed  the  pounding  and  bouncing  over 
the  stony  descent  and  the  trot  back  to  Ticul.  We 
spent  another  night  with  our  kind  friends  in  the  town, 
who  were  so  pleased  with  Julia's  talks  with  them  that 
they  refused  compensation,  and  gave  us  a  standing  in- 
vitation to  stay  with  them  if  we  should  come  again. 

An  earlv  train  next  morning  landed  us  in  Mer- 
ida  once  more.  This  time  we  went  to  the  Presby- 
terian Mission,  the  native  minister  in  charge  having 
invited  us  to  make  our  home  with  him;  his  wife  could 
speak  some  English,  and  she  wanted  to  practice.  We 
stayed  several  days  and  were  pleased  with  the  ])r<is)Kr- 
ity  of  the  mission.  AVe  attended  some  of  their  relig- 
ious services  and,  at  their  request,  gave  them  talks 
on    my    travels     in     Palestine,     Julia     inteii>reting. 


552  LIFE    AND    TRAVELS 

Many  of  their  questions  were  at  first  a  surprise. 
One  thing  they  wanted  to  know  was:  "If  the  hole 
made  by  the  cross  of  Christ  was  still  there,  and  if  blood 
was  still  coming  out  of  it  and  running  down  the  hill." 
This  they  had  heard  from  early  childhood  from  the 
Catholic  priests.  The  new  converts  in  particular 
were  much  astonished  t(j  hear  me  say  it  was  a  false- 
hood. 

We  now  applied  our  minds  to  the  question  of  where 
we  should  go  after  the  coming  festivals  were  over: 
if  we  were  going  farther  south  it  was  time  to  be  mov- 
ing, for  hot  weather  was  near  at  hand.  We  felt  that 
our  personal  visits,  together  with  what  we  had  seen 
in  Dr.  Thompson's  photographs  and  charts,  had  given 
us  a  tolerably  clear  idea  of  the  ruins  of  Yucatan,  and 
we  would  visit  some  others  on  the  homeward  trip, 
so  the  question  was  whether  we  would  go  south  or 
not.  Just  at  this  juncture  news  came  that  the  out- 
break in  Xicaragua  w^as  more  serious  than  expected, 
and  would  probably  inteiTupt  travel  for  some  months. 
This  settled  the  question,  with  little  regret  on  our 
part,  for  we  had  seen  more  than  we  expected,  and 
much  of  it  was  so  novel  and  wonderful  that  we  would 
suffer  no  loss  by  digesting  it,  and  we  trusted  to  go- 
ing south  at  another  time,  for  it  seemed  that  the  more 
we  traveled  the  more  instinictive  our  discoveries  be- 
came.    As  we  read  up  the  subject,  and  the  more  we 


OF   ADDISON   COFFIN.  553 

talked  with  Ainerieaii  and  Englisli  residents,  the 
more  amazed  we  became  to  find  such  astonishing 
things  so  near  home,  and  yet  so  little  known,  even 
bj  professed  scientists.  Every  day's  experience  only 
added  to  our  conviction  that  Yucatan  has  more  <;£ 
the  truly  marvelous  than  any  other  country. 

While  on  this  subject  1  wish  to  say  that  I  was 
so  fortunate  as  to  meet  Clayton  Byers,  of  Onzaba, 
Mexico,  who  is  a  national  surveyor,  employed  by  the 
government  to  locate  old  Spanish  grants,  and  to  lay 
them  off  in  sections,  as  was  done  with  our  public  land. 
He  had  been  through  the  Mexican  states  and  South 
America,  and  had  visited  and  studied  the  ruins.  He 
is  a  man  of  close  observation,  discerning  mind  and 
retentive  mem<jrv.  He  unliesitatinglv  confimied  my 
opinion  that  Mexico  and  Central  America  have  more 
interesting  ruins  than  any  other  part  of  the  world. 
He,  too,  had  taken  the  bearings  of  the  meridian  on 
w^hich  they  were  built,  and  gave  it  as  twelve  degrees 
east  of  the  meridian' of  to-day;  with  imperfect  in- 
struments I  had  made  eleven  degrees.  He  further 
stated  that  as  far  as  he  knew,  there  were  no  ruins 
built  on  a  meridian  west  of  the  present  one. 

When  T  studied  Burritt's  Geography  of  the 
Heavens  I  learned  that  Thuben  was  the  ])olar  st^ir 
2300  years  B.  C,  so  it  is  evident  that  the  ruins  were 
built  long  before  that  time.      If  we  run  our  pole  back 


554  LIFE    AND    TRAVELS 

through  Thiiben  until  it  is  opposite  a  point  twelve 
degrees  east  of  the  present  pole,  where  will  we  be? 
Is  it  not  possible  that  this  would  confirm  Le  Plon- 
geon's  suggestion  that  the  Maya  race  was  in  Yuca- 
tan 18,000  vears  a^o,  as  he  thinks  the  records  will 
prove?  Startling  as  this  may  seem,  the  record  has 
been  engraved  in  stone  by  skillful  hands.  From 
my  observation  and  reading,  I  agree  with  Byers  in 
his  assertion  that,  nowhere  in  the  world  have  ruins 
been  found  built  on  a  meridian  west  of  the  merid- 
ian of  to-dav.  Investigation  along  this  line  will  set- 
tle the  question  as  to  how  long  man  has  been  a  builder. 
I  am  convinced  that  the  architecture  in  Yucatan 
originated  there,  that  no  part  was  copied,  and  that 
people  lived  in  Yucatan  centuries  before  the  first 
foundation  stone  was  laid  in  Egypt,  or  before  the 
Hittite  became  a  nation.  The  most  astonishing  thing 
is  that  the  oldest  ruins  are  the  most  perfect.  The 
Maya  civilization  had  no  infancy;  it  came  from  the 
hand  of  the  CVeator  and  had  its  beginning  before 
war  was  known,  for  there  is  no  trace  of  a  defensive 
wall,  citadel  or  fortification.  This  remarkable  fact 
had  astonished  Clayton  Byers.  All  the  other  ruins 
of  the  world  have  walls  and  battlements,  citadels  and 
defensive  towers  showing  they  were  built  by  men 
of  war,  and  not  of  peace. 

The  first  of  the  tw<t  national  festival  was  IMardi 


OF    ADDISON    COFFIN.  555 

Gras,  introdiu'ed  by  the  Spaniards,  and  (Conducted 
much  after  the  st\de  of  our  southern  states.  It  con- 
sisted mainly  of  hideous  burlesque  and  buffoonery 
that  took  some  odd  shapes  and  frightful  hobgoblins 
peculiar  to  the  Catholic  superstition.  It  lasted  two 
(lavs,  the  second  being  called  the  battle  of  flowers. 
The  first  dav  was  mostly  nonsensical  and  disgust- 
ing, but  the  second  was  beautiful  and  exciting,  (xreai 
towers,  domes,  pyramids  and  triumphal  arches  of  flo\v- 
ers  were  mounted  on  hacks,  carts  and  express  wagons 
and  drawn  throui>h  the  sitreets  amid  the  shouts  and 
greetings  of  thousands  of  delighted  people.  Hun 
dreds  were  in  coaches  and  in  other  vehicles  bedecked 
with  garlands,  and  as  they  passed  they  threw  hand- 
fuls  of  natural  and  [)aper  flowers  into  the  faces  of  the 
crowd,  who  in  turn  showered  flowers  over  the  ve- 
hicles and  the  faces  of  the  passers-by;  one  never  knew 
when  a  handful  of  flowers  would  be  dashed  into  his 
face.  During  the  four  hours  this  noisy  and  delightfui 
pastime  continued,  hundreds  of  boys  and  girls  were  go- 
ing through  the  crowds  with  baskets  of  flowers  on  theii* 
heads,  thus  keeping  up  the  material  for  the  sport,  hi 
an  hour  after  the  festival  closed  there  were  scores  of 
men  and  women  on  the  streets  sweeping  up  the  great 
masses  of  crushed  flowers  and  scattered  pai)er,  which 
was  carted  off  to  the  dump  ground,  and  bv  night 
there  was  but  little  sign  of  the  day's  frolic.      Thougd) 


556  LIFE    AND    TRAVELS 

short-lived,  the  populace  looked  iipnii  it  as  a  gi-and 
success,  and  all  were  happy,  especially  the  children. 
While  it  lasted  tliev  shonted  with  nnrestrained  free- 
dom, covering  themselves  with  fallen  flowers  and 
gathering  loads  to  take  home.  A  pleasins:  trait  of 
Maya  character  was  shown  in  their  thoughtful  care 
of  the  children,  exhibited  by  old  and  young,  male 
and  female.  Of  the  thousands  who  ran  wild  and 
headlong  through  the  streets  few,  if  any,  were  hurt. 

The  other  festival  was  the  great  Maya  national 
dance,  which  has  been  kept  up  for  thousands  of  years 
with  unerring  regularity.  In  all  the  vicissitudes  of 
the  country  that  dance  has  been  celebrated  some- 
where, either  in  a  cave  or  on  a  mountain  top.  It 
generally  lasts  two  days,  or  a  night  and  a  day.  It 
was  held  in  a  large  building  with  an  open,  central 
court,  in  which  stood  a  temporary  music  stand. 
Onlv  full-blooded  Mayas  take  part,  and  all  are  bare- 
headed and  barefooted,  with  their  simple  garments 
of  spotless  white.  The  ceremony  began  with  music, 
the  bands  rendering  into  modern  meter  some  of  their 
ancient  national  melodies,  which  seemed  to  be  full 
of  life,  hope,  patriotism  and  love.  Then  there  were 
tunes  of  more  recent  times,  but  which  had  that  luourn- 
ful  under-tone  of  lament,  as  if  wrung  from  the  sad 
heart  of  a  ruined,  conquered  race.  Finally  they 
pealed  a  stirring  festal  melody,  that  aroused  the  vast 


OF    ADDISON    COFFIN.  557 

throng  from  the  hush  that  had  covered  it;  then  the 
performers  came  out  into  a  large,  smooth  and  paved 
hall  in  pairs.  For  several  minutes  all  stood  still, 
then  a  few  began  stepping-  out  with  a  slowly-mea- 
sured, but  graceful  motion;  others  joined  in  the  same 
slow  movement,  like  a  huge  wheel  starting  an  end- 
less line  of  shafts  and  wheels,  and  so  on  until  the 
whole  mass,  as  if  by  one  common  impulse,  began 
unwinding,  and  deployed  through  the  corridors  and 
chambers  until  all  were  gone.  The  music  fell  to  a 
lower  key,  then  l)ack  into  the  low,  sad  melodies,  as 
though  the  scene  was  ended  but  suddenly  it  would 
rise  to  brighter,  higher  tones,  and  the  head  of  the 
line  of  vanished  dancers  would  come  in  sight,  keep- 
ing time  in  the  same  swaying,  graceful  motion,  and 
again  wind  up  in  the  great  hall,  as  at  the  begin- 
ning. Then  another,  though  different,  evolution 
would  bo  performed;  then  they  would  unwind  and 
disappear  again;  and  so  the  ceremony  went  on  until 
after  midnight.  It  was  wonderful  to  witness  the 
agility  displaved,  especially  that  of  the  voung  women. 
Being  without  shoes,  their  light  footfalls  were  scarcely 
heard  on  the  polished  floors.  In  some  of  the  more 
active  turns  they  seemed  floating  in  the  air,  a  wav- 
ing, swayino-  mass  of  humanity. 

There  were  thousands  of  people  looking  on,  but 
all  were  still  and  seemed  bound  bv  some  unseen  in- 

36 


558"  LIFE    AND    TRAVELS 

lliience.  The  inspiring  music  and  the  flutter  of  the 
bare  feet  was  all  that  broke  the  silence,  giving  the 
scene  a  strange,  unreal  chai^acter;  it  seemed  like  look- 
ing through  a  glass  on  an  invisible  world.  It  was 
an  interesting  vision  of  young  life,  with  all  its  youth 
and  beauty,  though  we  were  saddened  wdien  we 
thought  of  the  superstition  and  degradation  that 
rested  on  them  like  a  dark  cloud.  The  second  night 
the  dance  continued  until  daylight,  and  those  who 
saw  it  reported  that  the  music  did  not  loose  its  magic 
melody,  nor  the  young  dancers  grow  weary.  They 
closed  with  a  gTand  triumphal  refrain,  which  rang 
out  on  the  morning  air  like  a  shout  of  glorious  ex- 
ultation. Four-fifths  of  the  participants,  male  and 
female,  were  laboring  people,  a  majority  of  the  women 
were  house  maids  and  working  girls,  and  the  men 
w^ere  engaged  in  every  variety  of  labor  common  to 
the  country.  To  strangers  it  seems  impossible  for 
working  people  to  have  such  natural,  gi-aceful  mo- 
tions and  skill  in  evolution  in  this  intricate  ceremony. 
The  chief  amusement  of  the  children  is  to  play  dance, 
and  as  we  looked  into  the  back  yards  and  inner  courts 
we  saw  them  practicing;  girls  from  eight  to  twelve 
years  of  age  were  marvels  of  perfection  in  the  art. 
Thus  we  saw  that  they  entered  into  the  spirit  of  this 
national  pastime  from  childhood.  ^liss  Ballinger 
would  often  exclaim:   ^'Oh,  what  a  field  for  Chris- 


OF    ADDISON    COFFIN.  559 

tian  work,  with  siioli  good  native  ability  to  work  with* 
think  of  those  beantifnl  girls  growing  up  in  ignoi'- 
ance  an  J  degrading  superstition;  it  makes  my  heart 
sick  to  think  of  it." 

One  day  when  we  had  been  to  the  outskirts  of 
the  city  we  came  up  behind  the  old  cathedral  fort, 
where  men  and  women  were  excavating  in  a  por- 
tion of  the  great  ruin  out  of  which  the  conquered 
Mayas  had  been  compelled  to  build  the  cathedral  and 
fort.  AVe  were  surprised  to  learn  that  they  had  been 
compelled  to  construct  a  tunnel  underground  as  a 
secret  passage  to  a  large  cathedral  three-fourths  of 
a  mile  away,  in  which  and  through  which  many  dark 
deeds  were  done.  The  passage  is  still  there,  but  is  not 
used. 

Merida  seems  to  have  been  a  noted  place  in  past 
time,  and  many  of  the  old  highways  radiated  from 
that  point;  especially  eastward  and  south  it  appears 
to  have  been  as  near  the  coast  as  any  of  the  large 
cities.  All  the  great  cities  were  built  inland,  seem- 
ingly to  avoid  either  something  belonging  to  or  com- 
ing from  the  sea.  It  is  strange  that  they  were  not 
a  maritime  or  commercial  people,  as  the  nations  of 
the  world  now  are.  This  strengthens  our  belief  that 
they  lived  in  a  day  when  the  human  race  had  not 
filled  the  earth,  and  were  all  of  the  same  language 
and  kindred,  and  had  not  learned  war  and  did  not 
need  to  l)e  on  the  defensive. 


560  LIFE    AND    TRAVELS 

The  romantic  story  of  a  •'liiddeu  nation'-  ex- 
isting on  the  border  of  Yucatan,  Chiapas  and  Guate- 
mala is  not  a  myth,  as  some  suppose,  for  there  is  a 
remnant  living  in  an  impregnable  valley  in  the  moun- 
tains, which  has  been  held  as  a  last  retreat  from 
the  early  history  of  the  Maya  race.  Through  all 
the  wars,  conquests  and  vicissitudes  that  have  come 
to  them,  that  stronghold  was  a  last  refuge,  and  has 
never  been  taken  by  an  enemy,  nor  can  it  be  so  long 
as  the  present  race  holds  it.  That  remnant  is  pure- 
blooded,  and  they  still  speak  the  original  Maya  lan- 
guage and  hold  their  ancient  religion,  supposed  to 
be  idolatrous,  though  for  many  centuries  no  one  from 
the  outside  has  ever  entered  the  valley  and  returned; 
they  do  not  suifer  their  brother  Catholics  to  go  there. 
They  come  out  t*)  trade,  sometimes  go  to  neighbor- 
ing cities  and  attend  festivals  and  gala  days.  They 
seem  to  be  a  finer,  nobler-looking  race  than  those 
outside,  who  have  been  conquered  by  successive 
enemies,  yet  living  for  so  many  thousand  years  in 
that  besieged  valley  they  have  lost  their  civilization 
and  history. 

The  man  named  Furguson,  who  with  a  good 
glass  peeped  into  the  valley  from  a  mountain-top, 
said  it  looked  to  be  thirty  miles  long  and  twenty 
wide,  surrounded  by  perpendicular  cliffs  two  to  three 
thousand  feet  high.     It  was  a  paradise  of  beauty, 


OF   ADDISON    COFFIN.  561 

thickly  dotted  over  with  white  villages,  surrounded 
by  gardens,  fields  and  orchards.  It  seemed  to  have 
been  especially  formed  for  a  last  refuge  in  the  hour 
of  danger;  their  numbers  are  variously  estimated 
from  50,000  to  40,000.  Forty  years  ago,  when  a 
large  number  of  Catholic  Mayas  rebelled  against 
state  taxation  and  church  abuse,  the  '^hidden  nation'* 
came  out  to  the  help  of  their  brothers  and  were  such 
shrew^d,  fearless  fighters  that  they  soon  over-ran  two- 
fifths  of  the  state,  and  the  rebellious  tribe  still  holds 
the  territory,  but  the  idolators  returaed  to  their  strong- 
hold, simply  claiming  the  right  to  cultivate  a  part 
of  the  free  land. 

There  is  but  one  natural  entrance  to  the  vallev, 
to  the  northeast.  It  is  very  narrow  and  between 
cliffs  one  to  two  thousand  feet  high,  and  one  thous- 
and men  could  defend  the  pass  against  all  the  world, 
for  it  is  beyond  the  reach  of  the  heaviest  gun,  be- 
side the  poisoned  arroAv  from  a  hidden  archer  Avould 
bring  down  an  enemy  like  the  pestilence  that  walks 
in  the  dark.  These  people  speak  the  oldest  language, 
and  possibly  they  are  the  only  pure  blood  in  the  world. 
There  is  one  thing  settled  beyond  a  doubt,  they  will 
never  accept  a  Christianity  that  has  any  connection 
with  Roman  Catholicism,  for  they  have  a  perfect  hat- 
red of  it  and  believe  all  the  outside  world  their  secret 
enemies. 


562  LIFE    AND    TRAVELS 

The  time  came  for  us  to  bid  adieu  to  our  kind 
friends,  so  we  left  the  pleasant  city  of  Merida  and 
came  to  Progresso,  its  shipping  point,  by  rail,  antici- 
pating the  arrival  of  a  Spanish  steamer  bound  for 
Vera  Cruz;  it  came  in  a  few  hours  after  our  arrival. 
A^liile  waiting  for  it  we  took  another  lesson  from 
the  natives.  A  porter,  with  wife  and  hve  children, 
was  sitting  in  the  shade.  My  niece  hailed  him 
to  carry  our  luggage  down  to  the  landing,  and  at  the 
call  he  and  all  the  family  arose  and  came.  The  price 
being  settled,  we  started,  the  porter  in  front,  we 
next,  and  the  wife  and  children  following,  discus- 
sing as  they  went  as  to  how  they  would  spend  the 
fee,  thirty  cents  in  our  money,  so  all  could  have  some- 
thing to  eat  for  their  noon  lunch.  It  was  interest- 
ing, yet  sad,  to  hear  their  simple,  innocent  reasoning 
and  planning,  and  it  seemed  to  be  an  ordinary  event 
in  their  lives,  with  no  brighter  future  before  them. 

A  low  tide  and  chop  sea  compelled  the  steamer 
to  anchor  well  out,  and  we  had  a  rough  trip  through 
the  breakers  in  crossing  the  waves.  AVhen  I  reached 
the  ship  my  head  was  so  dizzy  I  could  not  walk  for 
a  short  time,  and  others  stronger  than  I  were  in  the 
same  condition.  The  steamer  was  thoroughly  Span- 
ish in  all  respects,  with  Catholic  bigotry  predomin- 
ating, which  was  intensified  by  the  Cuban  war  and 
Cuban  refugees  aboard  going  to  Mexico,  as  a  tern- 


OF    ADDISON    COFFIN.  563 

purary  i)lace  uf  safety  from  want  and  danger.  'J'here 
were  a  few  English  and  American  oassen^ers  already 
on  board,  and  their  |)resence  wa^s  rather  irritating'. 
The  conditions  were  favorable  for  bad  feeling,  es- 
pecially towards  Americans,  and  on  Friday  Miss  Bal- 
linger  brought  things  to  a  head.  There  was  no  meat 
of  any  kind  on  the  table  for  breakfast;  she  called 
for  beefsteak.  The  waiter  replied  rather  haughtily 
and  scornfulh"  ''This  is  Friday,  if  you  do  hot  know." 
She  replied:  "You  may  have  all  the  Fridays  you 
please,  but  I  am  not  going  to  be  hungry  on  account 
of  your  senseless  superstition,  understand  that." 
This  was  spoken  in  Spanish,  and  some  one  instantly 
interpreted  it  into  Ene*lish  and  French.  In  an  in- 
stant there  was  a  cheer  all  through  the  dining  hall 
from  the  English,  Americans,  French  and  unbeliev- 
ing Spaniards.  The  effect  was  astounding  to  the 
bigoted  Spaniard.  All  parties  joined  in  praising  the 
brave  little  American  lady,  and  they  had  nuite  a  jol- 
lification. AVe  had  an  abundant  supplv  of  chicken 
and  other  meat  for  dinner  and  supper,  and  the 
pompous  waiter  was  very  polite  the  rest  of  the  voy- 
age. The  honorable  Englishman  leaned  back  the 
more  on  his  dignity,  the  American  increased  the  cloud 
of  vile  tobacco  smoke  by  at  least  one-half,  while  the 
Frenchman  was  all  a-\\dggle  with  his  gesticulations 
whenever  the  American  lady's  reply  was  under  dis- 
cussion. 


564  LIFE    AND    TRAVELS 

We  had  a  pleasant  voyage^  landing  in  Vera  Cruz 
in  the  forenoon.  Soon  after  noon  we  took  the  train 
and  ran  out  to  Orizaba,  taking  another  route  on  the 
return,  so  as  to  see  more  of  the  country.  Orizaba 
is  one  of  the  beautiful  cities  in  the  coffee  region. 
We  stopped  there  over  night  and  until  11  a.  m.  next 
day,  and  enjoyed,  the  grand  mountain  scenery  around. 
It  is  a  grand  summer  resort  for  people  from  the  low- 
lands or  from  any  part  of  the  wc^rld.  a  place  not  to 
be  forgotten  by  tourists. 

Next  day  we  took  the  train  for  Mexico  City, 
where  we  made  a  brief  stop  and  went  by  rail  to 
Montara.  There  we  had  a  glad,  sad  parting.  Glad 
that  we  were  safe  and  well,  up  to  that  point  on  the  re- 
turn trip;  sad  to  separate  after  so  long  companion- 
ship amid  such  grand  and  wonderful  scenes.  We 
both  must  now  go  Vvack  to  labor,  care,  anxiety  and  re- 
sponsibility. 

Miss  Ballinger  took  an  outgoing  stage  over  the 
same  route  we  had  traveled  in  going,  and  had  much 
the  same  kind  of  a  rough  trip,  but  finally  reached  Mat- 
amora  safe  and  well,  where  she  was  received  with 
joy  and  rejoicing  by  her  friends,  especially  by  Miss 
Dysart  at  the  Presbyterian  Mission.  She  found  her 
school  in  good  shape,  and  taking  it  altogether  it  had 
been  a  happy  outing  for  her,  and  an  opportunity  for 
her  young-  lady  pupils  to  try  their  skill  in  teaching. 


OF    ADDISON    COFFIN.  565 

I  returned  by  Laredo,  San  Antonio,  Little  Rock 
and  St.  Louis,  arriving  home  safe  and  well  with  mem- 
ories that  will  not  pass  out  of  mind,  and  with  pic- 
tures among  the  brightest  and  most  beautiful  of  all 
my  life,  and  my  heart  was  full  to  overflowing  of  all 
gratitude  to  the  Lord  for  bringing  me  home  safe,  as 
He  had  promised,  if  I  would  do  His  will  in  my  simple 
way  of  dealing  justly,  loving  mercy,  and  walking 
humblv  before  Him  in  my  joumev. 


THE  CLOSIi^G  CHAPTER. 


(By  his  daughter,  Ida  Coffin  Doan.) 

In  loving  remembrance  of  my  father,  Addison 
Coffin,  who  was  born  in  Guilford  county,  N.  C,  first 
month,  22d,  1822,  and  died  fourth  month,  16th,  1897, 
at  my  home,  Amo,  Indiana. 

On  the  forenoon  of  a  late  winter  day  there  was 
a  sudden  and  unexpected  commotion  in  our  house- 
hold, and  thi-ee  little  girls  were  seen  flying  through 
and  around  the  house  into  the  front  yard,  banging 
doors  behind  them  or  leaving  them  open  to  save  time, 
all  the  while  making  such  an  outcry  that  no  words 
could  be  understood.  At  last  it  became  one  glad  shout 
of:  '^Grandpa  has  come!"  Then  gTandpa  could  be 
seen,  the  girls  about  him,  holding  him  so  that  he  could 
scarcely  walk;  the  youngest,  a  three-year-old,  held  the 
place  of  honor  in  his  arms.  Older  people  had  no  op- 
portunity for  a  word,  though  we  felt  something  deeper 
than  joy  over  the  safe  aiTival  home  once  more  of  our 
dear  father. 

At  the  earliest  opjDortunity  the  horse  and  cow 
joined  in  the  joyous  welcome,  each  confident  of  an 
extra  bit  to  eat  or  a  loving  pat.  Even  the  cats  purred, 
(666) 


OF    ADDISON   COFFIN.  567 

arched  their  hacks  and  riibbt^d  about  his  feet,  in  an- 
ticipation of  attention.  'J'he  regidar  routine  work 
for  the  day  was  much  neglected  in  our  eagerness  to 
see  and  hear  everything  at  once.  Although  worn 
and  weary  with  his  journey,  he  was  ready  to  answer 
our  many  questions.  For  several  days  it  was  very 
difficult  for  him  to  keep  warm,  as  the  change  of  cli- 
mate had  been  sudden  and  very  great.  It  was  only 
with  the  coming'  of  the  warm  spring  sunshine  that 
he  ventured  out  to  work  in  the. garden  and  anioiig 
the  young  tree^.  A  sort  of  friendly  rivalry  existed 
between  him  aiid  some  old  men  about  his  age  as  to 
who  should  have  the  nicest  garden,  and  yard.  Who 
won  the  honor  wdll  remain  one  of  the  unsettled  ques- 
tions, for  each  one  was  proud  of  his  own  work.  Cer- 
tain, it  is,  that  my  father  became  so  interested  in  hivS 
growing,  out-door  family  that  he  was  at  home  almost 
all  of  the  summer,  enjoying  himself  only  as  one  with 
a  contented  and  happy  spirit  can.  When  he  was  not 
doing  self-imposed  work  out  of  doors  he  was  reading 
or  writing,  or  in  some  sort  of  friendly  "row,"  as  they 
call  it,  with  the  girls  about  some  of  their  carelessness 
or  mischief. 

He  made  some  short  visits  among  his  friends 
near  bv,  but  attempted  no  long  trips.  His  open-air 
work  brought  him  better  health,  the  best  he  had  en- 
joyed since  his  attack  of  jrrippe  in  the  spring  of  '95. 


568  LIFE    AND    TRAVELS 

He  attended  nearly  all  tlie  sessions  of  Western 
Yearly  Meeting,  and  was  mucli  interested  in  the  pro- 
ceedings. There  he  had  the  pleasnre  of  meeting 
many  friends,  both  yonng  and  old.  During  the  fall 
and  winter  he  had  quite  a  number  of  calls  for  talks 
on  his  travels,  as  he  called  them,  before  Farmers'  In- 
stitutes, and  in  different  neighborhoods,  mostly  in 
Western  Illinois  and  Eastern  Indiana.  Such  work 
seemed  to  cause  him  some  weariness,  but  he  main- 
tained his  strength  better  than  we  anticipated.  While 
school  was  in  session  he  was  frequently  called  upon 
to  talk  to  the  children  about  things  of  the  far-away 
countries  which  he  had  seen.  They  seemed  never  to 
weary  of  his  stories.  In  every  sense  he  was  the 
friend  of  children,  in  tender  memory  of  the  dear  little 
ones  who  had  gone  a.way  from  his  own  family  so 
early  in  life.  He  felt  that  in  his  childhood,  child- 
happiness  was  toe  much  neglected. 

The  last  trip  he  took  visiting  and  talking  was  in 
and  about  Oart.hage.  Indiana,  among  relatives  and 
friends,  being  gone  about  two  weeks.  Upon  his  re- 
turn home  he  told  of  the  pleasure  given  him  during 
his  visit  by  the  thoughtfulness  and  kindness  of  those 
with  whom  he  mingled.  It  was  early  in  March  when 
he  came  home,  and  he  appeared  in  usual  health  and 
spirits.  The  severe  cold  winds  occasioned  him  much 
annoyance  and  disgust  with  the  variable  climate  of 


OF    ADDISON    COFFIN.  509 

Indiana.  Before  tlie  end  uf  Marcli  those  who  were 
with  him  most  discovered  that  some  sort  oi  a  change 
was  coming  over  him.  He  was  unlike  iiimself  in 
being  dull  and  listless,  often  gi\  ing  little  heed  to  what 
was  about  him.  It  was  with  an  effort  that  he  aroused 
himself  to  work  in  tine  weather  with  the  things  in 
which  he  was  usually  much  interested.  He  was 
easily  tired  and  would  soon  come  in  to  rest.  On  the 
morning  of  the  10th  of  April  he  called  me,  and  [ 
found  him  lying  on  his  bed  in  a  severe  nervous  chill. 
At  first  no  serious  thought  was  given  to  this  sickne^^s 
except  that  he  was  unusually  weak.  The  next  morn- 
ing he  appeared  better  and  the  medicine  was  having 
good  effect,  yet  his  strength  was  gone.  We  all  felt 
hopeful  until  Tuesday  night,  when  he  became  de- 
cidedly woi-se.  One  lung  was  showing  signs  of  pneu- 
monia, though  not  apparently  of  a  serious  character. 
In  the  inability  of  his  system  to  throw  off  disease, 
laj^  his  danger.  He  appeared  in  a  vague  way  to  real- 
ize his  condition,  and  i^ianifested  his  desire  to  get 
well  in  many  ways.  In  the  delirium  of  his  last  forty- 
eight  houi-s,  many  names  and  various  places  were 
spoken  of,  some  of  days  long  gone  by.  He  often 
wished  to  go  home,  though  he  was  unconscious  of 
the  meaning  of  the  words  and  of  the  nearness  of 
that  better  home,  where  he  would  enjoy  grander  things 
than  he  had  known  here.      He  peacefully  passed  away 


570  LIFE    AND    TRAVELS' 

on  tlie  Kitlij  into  the  jjortals  of  "The  Xew  Jeriisa-- 
lem,"  wliere  there  were  many  more  of  those  he  loved 
to  greet  him  than  he  left  on  this  side  of  the  Valley 
of  Death.  Xot  mam^  weeks  before  he  went  away, 
in  a  revival  meeting,  he  spoke  more  truly  than  he 
knew  when  he  said  his  Avork  was  done  and  that  he 
was  only  resting  and  waiting. 

He  did  not  need  to  give  a  farewell  testimony 
in  regard  to  his  future,  for  his  life  through  many  years 
had  given  assurance  of  his  abundant  entrance  into  the 
City  of  God. 

Thus  ende<:l  a  Christian  life  begun  more  than 
half  a  century  before  in  the  old  New  Garden  meet- 
ing, in  Xorth  Carolina,  through  the  preaching  of 
Nathan  Hunt.  It  was  upon  Easter  Sunday,  a  beau- 
tiful day,  that  we  laid  him  to  rest  in  the  little  ceme- 
tery near  Hadley,  Indiana,  and  not  far  away  from 
the  place  he  always  called  ''home,'-  in  Indiana.  It 
was  Nathan  H.  Clark,  grandson  of  him  who  gave  my 
father  inspiration  for  right  living,  that  stood  above 
the  still  fonn  of  his  old  friend — himself  an  old  man 
with  dim  eyes  and  white  hair,  and  gave  out  words 
of  comfort  to  the  living.  He  spoke  of  God's  gracious 
companionship  and  help  toward  those  who  love  and 
truf;t  in  him,  and  the  faith  which  gives  us  the  a^c- 
tory.  The  face  and  form  is  gone,  but  the  benedic- 
tion of  the  life  is  still  with  us. 


JMoi-iq^  ro  ^^I'Kor^, 


^be  undersigned  ma[^e  a  ^PESIALTY 
of  manufacturing  boo(^s  for  0UTH0RS. 
^bis  ^ives  tbe  outbor  all  tbe  profits  tbere 
may  be  In  it,  instead  of  tbe  mere  pittance 
of  a  royalty.  Qutbors  will  do  well  to  co 
municate   witb   us, 


m- 


AUTHOR'S  PUBLISHERS, 

Cleveland,  Ohio 


V4     ilAi^C 


k^&^>''.^^44d 


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